


The Disappearing Detective

by VoidDragonQueen



Series: Stealing the Thief [2]
Category: Persona 5
Genre: Akechi Goro Lives, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Post-Canon, Drunken Shenanigans, Established Relationship, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Meeting the Parents, Minor Original Character(s), Stalking, Suicidal Thoughts, aka the au probably only i want but whatever, akechi starts shit for the drama of it all, akira is in college, alcohol mention, blogger akechi au, just the first chapter tho, relationship troubles abound, ren is an entire separate person and doesn't appear after the first chapter, scaling your apartment building is a reasonable way of avoiding the paparazzi, they play strip but its not that sexy it just gets concerning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-24
Updated: 2018-08-04
Packaged: 2019-05-27 17:27:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 37,915
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15029567
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VoidDragonQueen/pseuds/VoidDragonQueen
Summary: As Akechi tries to quietly fade into the background with the help of his newfound relationships, his biggest fan shows him that completely fading away as a celebrity is almost downright impossible. Of course, right now, all she has is wild conspiracy theories and being nosy, so he laughs it off at first. As rumors grow and spread like wildfire, Akechi's life is suddenly in danger as the very people he was trying to hide from start trying to find him again.The sequel to "Justice for the Fool".





	1. Welcome Back

_ Akira wasn't kidding when he said it was a long train ride. _

Akechi fiddled with his backpack. He was going to go see Akira at his college and spend the weekend there. He felt it would be a good opportunity to see his college friends. Akira also warned him it was parent’s weekend, so there will be a lot more people than there usually is on campus. Akechi pulled out his phone, trying to figure out how to pass the time. He pulled up his blog to see if there was any new comments.

He had decided some time ago that he would blog about his hobby, calling it “The Wild Ace Sewing”. He figured someone else might enjoy his stuffed crow, Joker, and his costumes. He put a picture of the Joker outfit, along with two other outfits he managed to make, a shimmery ballgown  dress and a little vest. A few others liked to comment on the outfits, and he loved talking to them. Akira's outfit was the most popular one with the most views. There wasn’t any new comments to respond to, so he hummed as he thought of what to do.

_ Hmm, I wonder… _

He hovered over the address bar, typing in the name of a blog he hasn't seen for 3 years.

**The Ultimate Akechi Goro Fan Blog!**

_ Jeez, it's still updating? _

Akechi frowned, noticing the date of the most recent post as he clicked through to the oldest post he hasn't read yet. He was curious a long time ago about it after one of his fans told him, reading what everyone thought of him during his days as the Detective Prince. It was a bit conceited, honestly, but it was the one voice of support during the Medjed and Okumura days when everyone turned on him. He read the rest as the train chugged onwards, hovering over the most recent post.

_ Am I really doing this? _

He is. He opened it, raising an eyebrow at how it was simply called “The Truth".

**I find it hard to believe that someone as well known and well loved as Akechi Goro would drop off the face of the earth. Not by his own decision, anyway, not when he knows how much his fans such as myself love him. So, I have a theory.**

_ Oh boy here we go. _

**I have reason to believe foul play happened. And, no matter what, I'm going to get to the bottom of this.**

**The Case of the Disappearing Detective is now open. I will not rest until I find out what happened to this beautiful man.**

**And I** **_will_ ** **find out the truth.**

Akechi blinked, rereading it.

_ Is this really happening? _

He checked the date of the post. August 31st. It was September 3rd now. He pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing. He knows he won't be found out easily. He's taken the steps to ensure that. Even his blog has nothing really identifying where he lives or anything about his private life, besides that he's called “Sapph" and that sewing is his hobby. His profile picture is of Joker without clothes.

He closed the browser, going to play with some of the little games he downloaded out of boredom, content to play games until he got to his stop. He knew that he would need to walk to the next train to get to the college, but that would be a much shorter ride.

~~~~~~

**Babe: Hey, I'm on your campus. Where are you?**

Akira grinned, jumping up from the couch in his dorm. His roommate looked up at him.

“What's up?”

“My boyfriend is here! I gotta go get him.” 

Akira made sure his key was on him before he ran out of his dorm.

**stay where you are, ill find u**

Akira was overjoyed at the sight of Akechi looking around confusedly for him. Akira ran over to him.

“Sapph!” 

Akechi turned as Akira hugged him, grunting as he was knocked back a little. He smiled, returning the hug.

“Hey babe.”

They kissed, Akechi holding his hand as they pulled away. Akira pulled him excitedly.

“C'mon, you gotta meet my roommates and see my room.”

“Okay, okay, I'm not gonna ditch you, Akira. I have no idea how to get anywhere.” Akechi was laughing and shaking his head.

Akechi was led to a little townhouse style dorm, the first level being a living room and tiny kitchen with the bedrooms and bathroom upstairs. Akechi looked around.

“So, this is the mysterious boyfriend we've been hearing about.” His dormmate Yu mused, his girlfriend Fuki sitting next to him.

Akira's roommate Jin was sitting across from the couple, looking up from his phone.

“Hello, I'm Sapph.” Akechi said, politely, bowing a little. “Pleased to meet you.”

“Oh, now I see who the responsible and polite one is.” Jin teased.

“Hey, he doesn't need to hear that.” Akira pouts, crossing his arms.

“I already knew that, babe.”

“Hey!”

Akechi hides a smile. Akira picks him up, bringing him over to the other chair, sitting down with him in his lap.

“Whoa, Akira! Some warning would've been nice.”

Akira nuzzles him, his roommate making a face at him before laughing.

“Where'd Ren and Mino go?”

“Out to get alcohol. This is gonna be a fun weekend.”

He felt Akechi ruffle his hair, and Akira saw a bit of worry in his expression. He kissed his cheek, trying to reassure him. His phone buzzed as someone called him. He awkwardly reached into his pocket under Akechi, immediately answering it.

“Hi mom. He made it here fine, we’re in my dorm. Oh? Really? Um, hold on.”

Akira covered the phone.

“Hey, my parents want to take us out to dinner. They wanna meet you.”

“When?”

“Tonight. They're coming up to visit.”

“I'm fine with that.”

Akira went back to the phone. 

“He said yes. Okay. See you tonight. Love you.”

He hung up, burying his face into Akechi's shoulder.

“Guess we’ll wait for you guys?” Jin asked.

“Doesn't matter to me. Start when you want to, we can catch up.”

“I should probably dress up a little, huh?”

Akira nodded, letting go so he could get up. 

“Which room…?”

“Oh, let me show you.”

Akira led him up to his and Jin’s room, closing the door behind them. Akechi dropped his bag on Akira's bed, pulling out Joker and putting him against the pillow. He dug through his other clothes to find out what would he should wear.

“You brought Joker with you?”

“I bring him almost everywhere with me. He reminds me of you.” 

Akechi changed as quickly as he could with Akira pressing up against him and kissing his neck.

“Babe…”

“Sorry, couldn't resist.”

They came back downstairs, Akira wrapping his arm around his waist as they stood. They sat down again, in separate spots this time, and talked until Akira’s parents called him again to tell him they were almost there.  
  


“You’re worried about me meeting your parents.”

“I am.”

“Akira, I’ll be fine.”

“I just worry they might go too far with their questions.”

“Akira, I promise I can handle it.” 

Akechi ran his thumb over his hand. Akira put his head on his shoulder. The two of them were sitting on a bench just outside campus grounds, waiting for his parents. They pulled up, his dad rolling down the window.

“Hey boys! You ready to eat?”

They stood up, walking over and getting into the car. Akira watched as his mom fussed over the state of his hair as his dad drove, embarrassed.

“And you must be Sapph, right?” 

“Yes, pleased to meet you both, Mr. and Mrs. Kurusu.”

Akechi switched to his old talk show voice to stop himself from stuttering. Akira put his hand on top of his as they made their way to one of the few restaurants in the area that wasn’t a fast food chain.

After they sat down and ordered drinks, they all got to making small talk. Akechi quietly made some tasteful jokes and gentle conversation that made Akira infinitely jealous of his talking skills. They all decided on what they want for food, ordering when the waitress came back. Mrs. Kurusu leaned forward, intent on learning more than what Akechi had given them.

“You know, I think you’re good for our little Akira. You seem to be a good kid.” 

“Mom…” 

“I’m trying to be, ma’am.” 

“Though I can’t imagine the worry that your parents are going through when you decided to come out here to visit our son for the weekend.”

“I...live on my own, actually.” 

Akechi’s smile drops as he says it. Akira grabs his hand under the table and gives it a squeeze. 

“Oh, a bachelor pad, I get it.” She continues, laughing politely. “I hope you call them every once in a while. I’m sure they miss you.”

Akechi shifts under her gaze, staring into his water. Akira turns to his dad, trying to bring the conversation away from his parents.

“Dad, how’s work going?”

“Akira, your mother asked a question. It’s rude to interrupt.”

“Actually, could you excuse me for a moment? I need to use the restroom.”

Akechi doesn’t even wait for a response, he just leaves the table. Akira tugged at his shirt. 

_ How do I tell them my boyfriend is an orphan politely? Actually, maybe don’t say that. _

“His...parents aren’t on, um, speaking terms with him. He doesn’t like talking about it.” He said quickly.

“Oh, you should’ve warned us! I feel so sorry for him.” 

“Mom…”

Akechi came back a few minutes later, with forced half-smile on his face. Akira quickly dominated the conversation until Akechi was relaxed again and joined in. The four of them had a pretty decent night before Akira’s parents dropped them back off at the college. They started walking back to Akira’s dorm, their hands intertwined, swaying as they walked.

“Well, they were nice enough…” Akechi murmured.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, Akira. You worry too much.”

“I think I worry the perfect amount. Besides, I told them you weren’t on speaking terms with your parents.”

Akechi snorted.

“That’s quite the understatement considering they’re both dead.”

“I panicked. Also, it would’ve been worse if I said ‘hey mom, dad, my boyfriend is an orphan’. They would’ve made that super uncomfortable to you.”

“Maybe you should’ve told them.”

“It’s not my place to say.”

“I mean, what would’ve made it worse would’ve been ‘hey mom and dad, I killed my boyfriend’s father, but it’s okay he was an asshole anyway’. Or ‘hey, my now boyfriend tried to kill me twice for his shitty dad and that’s how we met’.”

“Goro…”

“I’m just saying.”

Akira opened the door, gesturing Akechi to go ahead of him. Akira closed the door and locked it, seeing everyone there.

“How’d it go lovebirds?” Jin teased.

“Okay.” Akechi smiled.

Akira took a bottle of wine, turning and holding it up to get Akechi’s attention. He nodded, Akira turning and getting a mug. 

“Oh, we haven’t met yet! I’m Ren, and this is my girl Mino!” Ren, the bluish black haired boy grinned, waving at him.

“Hiiii Akira’s boyfriend!”

“I’m Sapph, nice meeting you.”

Akechi could tell everyone else was already somewhat tipsy. Akira handed him the mug of wine, holding his own drink. He tugged Akechi to sit down with the rest of them. All of them chatted for a while, the two of them catching up on drinks with the rest of them. Akechi was only somewhat tipsy after 3 cups of wine, while Akira was progressively drunker halfway through his fourth drink.

“Babe, you gonna be okay babe?” Akechi asked, concerned.

“With you by my side I will be~” He slurred in response.

“Hey, how about a game of strip cards?” Mino suggested.

“Oh, what game?” 

“Cards Against Humanity! It’s fuuun! I’ll teach you all the rules for the strip version.”

“Sounds good to me.”

“Alright, how far are we going though?”

“Umm, just to undies? Like, me and Fuki gotta take off our bras but the underwear stays.”

Everyone agrees, letting Mino quickly go over the rules and deal out seven cards to each of them, rearranging themselves to be in a close circle with the little coffee table in between them.

 

As the game goes on, everyone in various states of undressed, Akechi and Akira managing to just be in their shirts and pants. Ren and Jin had an argument whether or not it counted to only take off one of your socks in strip. Fuki was beating all of them as both her socks were still on and she had the most points. It was her turn to judge, so no chance for her to lose clothing this round. After a bit of arguing, Akechi’s card is voted the worst one.

“Ah, damn it.” Akechi muttered as he lays his cards face down to take off his shirt. “It was funny to me.”

He throws the shirt on the floor, picking his cards up again as Ren draws the next black card. Fuki leans over to Akira, deeply concerned. He had forgotten that some of the scars are very clearly bullet wounds, though almost faded away completely now.

“Hey, is your boyfriend okay? He has sooo many scars…” She whispers a little too loudly.

Akira glances over as Akechi meets his eyes, frowning at her comment. He quickly excuses himself to the bathroom.

“He’s fine. They’re old scars anyway.”

“Okay, but that one on his back looks awful.” Fuki touches Akira’s arm. “Are you covering up for him?”

“I’m...really not. They’re just old scars, I swear to you.”

Fuki looked like she didn’t believe him at all as she straightened up again. Akechi rejoins them after a few minutes, a blank expression on his face. He asks to look at the black card as he looks through his hand.

“Man, Sapph, you’re so lucky.” Mino says suddenly. “My mother wouldn’t let  _ me _ stay the whole weekend with my boyfriend.”

Akira opens his mouth before Akechi cuts him off.

“My mother is dead, actually.”

Everyone is silent for a moment as what Akechi just said sinks in.

“What about your dad…?”

“In hell where he belongs.” Akechi growls, tossing his cards onto the table. “I’m going to bed.”

He gets up and runs upstairs before anyone can say anything. Akira gets up, stumbling upstairs. He finds Akechi curled up on his bed, hugging Joker close to his chest. 

“Babe…?”

“Sorry, I said too much.” Akechi slurs.

Akira says nothing, walking over to him and pulling the blanket partially over him. He climbs into bed, wrapping around him gently. He starts kissing the scars along his back. The two of them fall asleep soon afterwards, forgetting about the game.

The next morning over breakfast in the dining hall, they made some small talk, not wanting to talk much about last night.

“Hey, Sapph. I’m really sorry about that.” Mino apologizes, sliding a hand over his.

“It’s alright. I shouldn’t have snapped at you.”

They said nothing more about it. They turned their conversation to other things, such as the possibility of group dates and more game nights in the future.  
  


In the blink of an eye, the weekend was over. Akechi kissed Akira goodbye, the warmth on his lips a fond memory that stayed with him the entire train ride back to Tokyo. He collapsed in his own bed that night, absolutely exhausted.


	2. Obsession

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We meet our self-proclaimed junior detective and biggest fan coming to a breakthrough.

Tahara Akiko tapped her pen against her lips as she sat at her desk, trying to concentrate on taking notes during her last class of the day. Her mind was distracted by something else entirely, not that she was complaining. As soon as the bell rang to end the day, she was out the door as soon as possible. Her friends were going on a double date with their boyfriends tonight anyway, and she didn’t really feel like being the fifth wheel again.

She was not any more special than any other third-year if she were to be honest with herself. However, she prides herself on being Akechi Goro’s biggest fan since he first started getting popular. She made the blog years ago, she changed it only slightly since its creation to something that was a bit less of an eyesore. She loves that her blog is still popular even now. Still, Akechi’s supposed disappearance has been bugging her. Her train ride was spent puzzling over the events, trying to remember everything that happened three years ago.

The fact that no one seems to know where he went three years ago eats at her inside. Where was the outrage? The questions? Why did no one else outside of her circle of similarly concerned fans seem to talk about him anymore? Who did this to him? Who hated the dear Detective Prince that much to force him out of the spotlight? 

She hoped he wasn’t dead. It would break her heart.

Tahara let herself into her house. Both her parents were working late today, and her sister was at a sleepover at her friend’s house. No one would bother her. Besides, she needed to finish her research in peace.

She opened her laptop, getting right back to it. Her collected evidence document was rather complete, just needed some formatting. She had a tab open with the footage of Akechi’s last TV appearance. It always worried her, he looked a bit sick during it, especially after the phone rudely interrupts him. She had some other tabs with different news and tabloid articles open written around the same time of his last appearance. She knows she can’t take a tabloid seriously, but sometimes there was truth sprinkled throughout a bunch of them that matched with each other. Anything related to each other was highlighted and pasted into her document, with the names of the papers that synced up next to them. All the links were saved, but other than what she hasn’t already reread three or four times, there’s nothing major left that she missed.

But this is where she had been stuck. Tahara had hit a wall, and had no more to go on for a few weeks. She tapped a pen on her desk, thinking. She had about a 3 month range of when exactly he went missing, and hasn’t found anything to narrow it down further.

_ Oh, that Phantom Thief site. He was investigating them after all. _

She searched for the site, surprised that it was still up. She opened it, digging down to the older posts to see if anyone mentioned him. The Okumura posts were still up, and she grumbled at the amount of insults they threw at her dream man. She slowly scrolled up, searching for something, anything. She saw a thread about a calling card, opening it up. 

**Anon: damn u see that calling card?? Its crazzyy! heres wat i got from my phone. [Video]**

Tahara watched it. Interesting. She decided to look through the other comments. One string caught her eye.

**Anon: hey where did that shitty detective go anyway? Like hes just gone lol**

**Anon: akechi? Idk + idc**

**Anon: my uncle said he just like stopped coming to work after that calling card for shido went out. Like no1 could reach him?? not even nijima could, it was crazy**

_ After the calling card…? _

She scrolled back up to the video again, looking at the time stamp on it.December 11. A week away from the election. She screenshot the two comments, copying the link into her evidence document. She closed a few tabs she didn’t need anymore, opening her own blog to make a new post.

**Okay, so after some time, I’ve gotten a breakthrough!**

**So, remember his last TV appearance? [link] He looked a bit sick here, especially after the phone rings. And then here was a bunch of stuff that stuck out to me in a bunch of articles.**

Here, she left an entire list of quotes from the articles, deciding to link all of them at the bottom of her post.

**I know, you really shouldn’t trust tabloids. But it’s weird that they all talk about two things: Akechi’s involvement in the Phantom Thieves case, and how off he seemed during his last interview. I got stuck here for a while, because I thought there was no leads. Then it hit me: the Phan-site! That stupid site for the Phantom Thieves that had ripped our poor Akechi apart during the Medjed and Okumura thing before Okumura died. With some deep digging, I found these posts. Notice the date on them.**

Here, she carefully arranged the screenshots and video, circling the dates for good measure.

**So this person’s uncle mentioned he wasn’t reachable after the calling card went out. The video says it was uploaded on December 11th. The election that year was the 18th. Somewhere in that time, Akechi Goro disappeared.**

**Now that I have a timeframe, I can start searching for other clues. Don’t worry, my dear Akechi, I’m on the case!**

She looked it over once before posting it, satisfied. She grabbed a sticky note, writing “Dec 11-Dec 18” on it before sticking it up on her wall at eye level. She looked over to her little corkboard, smiling at the picture of her taking a selfie with Akechi, right above his autograph. 

“Soon, my darling Prince. I will figure out what happened to you, and you will get the justice you deserve.”

She closed her laptop, going downstairs to decide what she was going to make for dinner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, we meet the girl behind the blog.


	3. Dealing with Phans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akechi's blog suddenly gets a lot more attention than he was expecting. Tahara hits another wall in the "case", her friend offering to lend a hand if she needs it.

“Sapph! I missed you!” Ohaya shouted, holding up her drink.

“Hi Ohaya-chan.” Akechi smiled at her as he slipped around the bar to change in the back. “Where’s Lala-chan?”

“Oh, she stepped out for a bit, she’ll be back. But how did it go?”

“He wasn’t kidding when he said it was a long train ride out there. But it went well, I think. I met his parents too.”

“I’m sure they loved you.”

Akechi stepped back out, dressed up in his usual blue koi yukata, hair in a bun with his little hair stick with the blue dangling charm and blue lipstick. 

“They said I was a good influence on Akira, so I think that’s the highest compliment I could’ve gotten.”

He grinned as Ohaya chuckled. He waved to Lala when she came back in.

“Sapphire! How was the weekend, dear?”

“It was pretty good. Met Akira’s parents actually and I think they really like me.”

“Oh, how wonderful!”

The three of them chatted until the rush started, Ohaya excusing herself and slipping out the door.  
  


Later, Akechi was laying in bed when Akira calls him.

“Hello?”

“Heyyy~”

“Oh, you’re drunk again?” He was disappointed.

“Yeah, I miss you so much.”

“I just saw you two days ago, Kira.”

“I know and I miss you already.”

“Babe.”

He could see Akira pouting on the other end.

“Listen, I love you so much, okay?”

“I love you too. Go get some water and some sleep, okay? You have class.”

“Okay, I will. Love you. Good night.”

“Good night.”

A buzz from his phone as soon as he closes his eyes. He sees it’s from Akira and grumbles, opening the message. He immediately drops the phone, blushing furiously.

**AKIRA**

**K: wut**

**Are you kidding me? Now?!**

**K: uve dun wors**

**No I haven’t.**

In response, Akira just sends him the selfie Akechi sent to Ryuji. He buries his face in his pillow to prevent himself from screaming.

**K: at ealst i have boxes on**

**You saved that picture?**

**K: yit cute <3**

**Don’t you “cute” me. I’m deleting your picture.**

**K: :c**

**Night.**

He deletes the picture Akira sent him, tossing his phone somewhere out of reach before rolling over. 

_ Thirsty idiot. _  
  


Morning rolls around as he slowly wakes up. He leans halfway out of bed to grab his phone, reading the mess of texts Akira sent him before he passed out.

**Did you at least get water?**

He got up, getting a bagel for breakfast. He moves some of his sewing stuff the side to put his mug down as he sat, waiting for his tea to brew. He looks through the fabric while he waits, figuring out what he wanted to make next.

_ Well, I made Akira's outfit. Why not make everyone else's? _

He picks through what he has, making a list of what else he needed. He gets dressed, putting on an old t-shirt and jeans, pulling his hair into a ponytail. He grabs his bag, making sure he takes his medicine before leaving. On his way out the door, his phone buzzes.

**O: hey, would you like to join mona-chan and i 4 coffee at Leblanc tomorrow?**

He responded to Haru, saying he would love to.

  
  


“Hi, Sojiro-san.”

“Hey kid. How's everything going? Still seeing that therapist?”

“Good, and I am. She's pretty good.”

Akechi slides into one of the empty booths, seeing one other customer in the cafe. He looked like he was leaving soon anyway.

“Futaba not helping out today?”

“She's sleeping late today. School is a bit tiring for her.”

As he waits for Haru, he wonders if that blog has updated since he was gone. He navigated to the blog, seeing it had updated and scrolled through it. He noted that she at least did her research thoroughly, even if half the papers she quoted were slanderous tabloids.

_ Well, she’s not wrong about the when. Even if her time frame is a little off. _

The man leaves as Haru comes in, sliding in across from him. He puts his phone down and looks up, smiling. He sees Morgana’s eyes flicker to what was on the screen before looking at him.

“So, how was he? Is he getting enough sleep?” Morgana asks, climbing on the table.

“Sheesh, you're asking me about that when I went to visit? I wouldn't know, Mona. Also, why didn't you go with him this year?”

“His roommate is allergic to cat fur.”

“Well, how was it? Did you meet some of his friends?” Haru spoke.

Sojiro served them water, a bowl of milk, and coffee as they talked, thanking him.

“His friends were nice enough. Met his parents too, which was awkward, but they seem to like me.”

“Oh, you met them, huh?” Sojiro piped up. “How embarrassed did Akira get?”

“Good amount, except when they asked about my parents.” Akechi rubbed his neck when Sojiro looked concerned. “I had to leave the table while Akira lied for me.”

“Well, I'm glad he's looking out for you.”

“It seems like it went well, though.” Haru offered, sipping her coffee.

“Yeah. Oh, wait, I have something to show you.” 

Akechi dug through his bag, pulling out Joker. He placed him on the table, the crow dressed in her outfit. Haru squeaked, lifting up the crow to examine it. The door jingles as someone else comes in, but they paid it no mind.

“Oh, so cute!” She was grinning. “You even got the feather right. You're so good at this.”

“Thank you. I figured I did one of you guys, I might as well do the rest.”

“Another one?” Futaba grinned, sliding in next to Akechi. “When are you gonna do mine?”

“When I can, Sakura.” 

She stuck her tongue out at him before she pulled out her laptop. He glanced at Morgana before leaning over to her and whispering something. She snorted, getting up to lean over to Morgana. Akechi dug through his bag, pulling something out. They exchanged a glance before Futaba grabs Morgana.

“Hey! What are you doing?!” he protested.

“Just sit still, Mona!” 

Akechi moved quickly, putting something on him with Futaba’s help. She got up with Morgana, handing him off to Akechi as he stood up. He squished his face against his as Futaba took a picture of them. They had put Akira's outfit on Morgana, and it had fit him perfectly. He was placed back on the table as he struggled. Haru was trying to stifle her giggling with little success.

“Send me that picture?”

“You got it.” 

“That was rude, you two! I can't believe you made me play dress up. This doesn't suit me at all!”

Sojiro looked over, hearing the cat’s incessant meowing.

“But Mona, you look so good.” Akechi soothed, taking one more picture.

“Hey! No more pictures!”

“Last one, promise. I’ll take it off.”

Akechi unbuttoned the costume, taking it off. Morgana slipped into Haru’s lap once he was free, narrowing his eyes at the culprits.

“And sent.”

“Thank you.”

“I shouldn't trust you two together, apparently.” Morgana grumbled.

“Oh, but you looked so cute, Mona-chan!”

“Haru, don’t encourage them!”

“Hey, you pull it off better than Akira did.” Akechi showed him the picture.

“I mean, obviously. I am good looking after all. Hey, wait! Don't get any ideas!”

“It was just this once, I promise.”

They sat back down as Morgana huffed his displeasure. He sent the picture of Morgana to Akira after saving the other picture to his phone. He pulled up his blog, changing his profile picture to the one of him and Morgana.

“Hey, what's that?” Futaba leaned over to look.

“Oh, my sewing blog. I like showing off my work, but don't worry, I haven't shared all that much.” 

Futaba pulled up his blog, going through it. She noticed all the names for outfits were the kind you'd find on doll sites. She turned it around to show Haru and Morgana.

“I think it's cute.” 

“Man, Akira's outfit has the most views, huh?”

Akechi shrugs in response. They go back to chatting about other things, Joker pulled back in front of Akechi.

~~~~~~~

Mishima opened the Phan-site when he noticed there was new activity on it.

**Thread: hey check this out**

**Qowl: someone made an outfit of one of PT [wildacesewing.blogon.com/heartthief]**

**AnaniMouse: oooo how cute! Oh they made another one, look at it! [wildacesewing.blogon.com/beautythief]**

**Uru: those look rly good wtf. did u see that cat tho**

Mishima raised an eyebrow, clicking through to the links. 

_ Oh wow, they weren't kidding, those do look good. _

He read the description, seeing the profile picture of a person holding a cat.

**Hi, I'm Sapph, and sewing is my hobby. I work a lot so don't expect a lot of updates, I post when I finish an outfit. My little stuffed crow model is named Joker. Enjoy!**

Mishima opened the image, looking closely at the person. They had a ring of discolored skin around one of their eyes, partially hidden by cat. The cat looked displeased to be dressed up.

_ They seem really familiar… _

Mishima wondered if he's met this “Sapph" person before. He can't recall meeting anyone named that though. Still, the familiarity bugged him as he put his phone away.

~~~~~

Akechi opened his blog one morning, surprised by the huge amount of new comments. He read through them, confused.

**Anon: I saw this one the phan-site! These are so cool, cant believe some phans are so talented lol**

_ Huh? _

He searched for the site mentioned, reading through the latest forum thread.

_ Oh, someone linked my blog here? This site is still active too? _

He flipped back to his blog, reading the other comments. Someone sent him the picture from one of the recordings of the calling card the Phantom Thieves sent Shido, with just “do the rest please! :)” attached.

_ Okay, wow. Lots of requests for the rest of the outfits. _

Akechi tapped rhythmically on his table as he thought about what to do. He started a new post, deciding to address everyone at once.

**Okay, wow, did not expect this blog to blow up like this. All of you are asking a lot of questions, especially about the Phantom Thieves outfits. I might have to make a separate post for an FAQ soon.**

**For the record, I will make the outfits when I can. I cannot promise that they will be done in any way quickly, I am only one person after all. I am figuring out patterns as I go along for outfits seen only once and from the front, after all.**

**Cheers,**

**Sapph and Joker.**

He posted it with an attached picture of Joker, sighing. He had to admit, sewing as his way to internet fame was not something he imagined happening this quickly. He chuckles to himself about it.

~~~~~

**Loveline342: Hey, kiki, have you seen this?**

Tahara glanced at the DM she got from one of her long time internet friends. She opened the image she was sent, seeing someone holding a cat, smiling, eyes closed. Something about their face made her second guess herself.

**Why did you send me this?**

**Loveline342: [akechismile43(1).jpg] similar, no?**

She pulled the other picture up, comparing them side by side. It was one of Akechi’s patented closed eye grins. It was one of the things she found endearing about him. 

**Im not really seeing it ig, sorry**

**Loneline342: hmm. Idk, i thought they just look really alike. Prob nothing then. How's the case going? U need a partner?**

**Maybe. I've hit another dead end here, still got some leads to work through. Ill get back to you tho. Ur my first choice in investigating partners**

**Loveline342: awww, thank u <3 ttyl!**

**Ttyl!**

Tahara stared closely at the two pictures. She did a reverse image search, finding the blog the picture came from. She read through it, starting with the most recent post and going through some of the comments. She noticed someone mentioned coming from that stupid Phantom Thief fan site and frowned. She pulled up that site again, reading through the thread with the links to that blog. 

_ This Sapph really is talented. Not sure why Eiko sent me their picture though. _

She leaned back, her thoughts interrupted as her mother called everyone down for dinner. Still, it bugged her, but she pushed it away for now as she ate, chatting with her family.

~~~~~~~

Akira opened the group chat after class, noticing he had unread messages from it.

**Futaba: lol damn, some1 sure got popular like overnight :p**

**Babe: I didn't plan to be. This is a bit overwhelming to be honest.**

_ Oh shit oh no what the fuck happened?? _

**Haru: but its sorta cute at the same time. Love that new profpic btw**

**B: Thanks, Mona looks like he's going to kill me though.**

**Wait wut?? U ok??**

**Ann: u didnt tell him?**

**B: Oops.**

**Tell me what?!?! Wtf is goin on????**

Akechi sent a link which Akira immediately opened. He was taken to a blog where the stuffed crow was a model for different costumes that he had sewn. His outfit was still the most popular one, but Akechi had a version of Haru’s and Ryuji’s costumes up too.

**oh thank god dont scare me like that :/**

**B: Sorry! It's not that big a deal, honest.**

**F: yeah lol @Akira the worrywart**

Akira let out a sigh, relieved it wasn't the worst case scenario. He went back to getting to his next class on time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm just making up usernames and websites as I go, so any matching names are pure coincidence.


	4. Anniversary

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akira mentions being able to come up for a little bit for winter break. Akechi is excited, getting to see his boyfriend in person since he last saw him in September. Tahara has another breakthrough, or so she thinks.

Tahara sighed, opening her DMs and looking for Eiko’s username. She sent everything she had gathered recently. This was frustrating. The dead end has been taunting her for months now. Now that it was December 9th and getting closer to the anniversary of his disappearance, she was getting a bit discouraged.

**Pls help me when u get a chacne. I cant figure it out and its driving me nuts. There's something I'm missing**

She sighs, tapping a pen to her lips as she reviewed everything. The two pictures Eiko sent her earlier were saved to her computer, just in case she could figure out why Eiko sent them. She pulled them up again, taking her time to study the two pictures.

_ Akechi doesn’t own a cat though, there’s no way he’d risk getting cat fur all over himself. _

~~~~~~~

**K: hey babe, I'm coming up for 10 days for winter break. Can I stay overnight, I'm coming up pretty late and ik ur working late**

Akechi glanced at the calendar. It was December 10th now.

**When?**

**K: tonight. Tried to get to stay longer but my parents want me home before the 24th.**

**Sure. You know where I work. Can't wait.**

**K: ur the best <3<3<3**

**< 3**

Akechi ruffled his hair, putting his latest project down for a moment. Panther's outfit was a pain in the ass because of the tail. His popularity only got higher as he had completed the other outfits, saving Panther's for last specifically for this reason. His phone buzzed again, picking it up.

**K: oh I got a heart!!! :0**

**K: ur first <3 im so proud of u!!**

**Shut up.**

Akechi rolled his eyes, going back to trying to figure out how to sew the little tail to the rest of the outfit. 

After half an hour of constant readjustments, he gave up, sighing. He decided to get ready for work, taking more of Takemi's medicine before he left.

~~~~~~

Akira smiled when he saw Crossroads, ducking inside. It was really busy as he moved to an empty seat and sat down. He waved to Akechi when he saw him, watching as he weaved in between the patrons with a full tray of drinks. After delivering them, he slipped back behind the bar. 

“Hey Akira. How was the train ride?”

“Long. Tiring. But I get to see you, so that makes up for it.” 

Akechi rolled his eyes at him as Akira grinned. Akira waited out his shift, yawning once or twice.

 

The two of them walked hand in hand back to his apartment. 

“Sheesh, how long have you had that picture anyway?”

“Oh, the naked selfie of us you sent Ryuji? It was my phone wallpaper for a while.”

That earned him a smack in the arm.

“You’re so ridiculous sometimes.”

“But you love me!”

“Yeah, yeah.” 

 

Akechi swung the door open to the apartment, gesturing him to enter first. Akira went in, looking around. The new apartment wasn’t much different from his old one, just more fabric stuff was strewn about.

“Sorry, it’s a bit of a mess.”

“Goro, you know I don’t care.”

“I care, Akira.” 

Akechi kissed his cheek, leaving a lipstick mark before stripping out of his yukata. Akira placed his bag over near the open closet, spotting his old uniform in a pile on the floor.

“Wow, you still have that?”

“Hmm? Oh, that. Yeah, I, uh, haven’t touched it since I moved in.”

“Sheesh, your apartment really is a mess.”

“You said you didn’t care.”

Akira smiled, taking off his shoes and socks and placing them by the door. He wrapped Akechi in a hug, swaying back and forth with him slightly. He felt arms wrap around his shoulders as Akechi leaned his forehead against his. He pulled away to pull out his ponytail, letting his hair fall, putting on some pajama pants. Akira changed into his own pajamas before joining Akechi on the edge of the futon. They made out, laying back together as they settled under the blankets. Akechi pressed his face into Akira’s neck as he took off his glasses.

“You have lipstick all over you.” He mumbled.

“And it’s your fault, Goro.” Akira teased as Akechi reached up to muss his hair.

“I need to leave my mark sometimes, you know.” 

He felt Akechi grin against his skin as he spoke. Akira steals one more kiss from him before they fall asleep.

Akira woke up to find himself alone. He grumbled, rubbing his eyes. He finds Akechi in the kitchen, cooking something. He puts his glasses on, getting up and walking over. 

“Oh, I see, you want me to freeze instead of staying in bed keeping me warm.”

He presses up against his back as he teases him, careful not to touch the pan or pin his arms.

“You weren’t gonna freeze. This place has proper heating, I’ll have you know.”

Akira could feel him laugh quietly as he kisses his neck, wrapping his arms around him. He placed his chin on his shoulder, looking to see what he was making.

“Is scrambled eggs all you know how to make, babe?”

“No, it’s an omelette. There’s cheese in it.”

“Like that makes much of a difference in taste.”

“Not all of us have expert curry makers to make us curry for breakfast every day, Akira.”

“Mmm. You still have some lipstick on.”

Akechi turns off the burner, folding the omelette. Akira lets go to grab two plates so Akechi could cut the omelette in half for the two of them. Akira held the plates as Akechi cleared a spot for them, carefully moving the panther outfit somewhere else. 

“Oh, Ann’s outfit now?”

“Last one, and it’s been a pain in the ass.”

They ate together, chatting and catching up. After clearing the dishes, Akira watched as Akechi sewed, finally feeling good about the placement of the tail to finish it. He took a picture once done, uploading it to his blog. The two of them got dressed, heading out to go to Leblanc.

~~~~~~~~~

Tahara had been mulling everything over with her friend for days now. She was getting nowhere, and it angered her. 

_ Obviously, someone made him disappear. That’s why there’s nothing on him! _

She pulled up the pictures side by side again. This Sapph person was nagging at her constantly, and she’s not sure why. She feels like she has met them before. She opened up one of those silly picture morphing sites on a whim as she waited for Eiko to respond to the last article she sent her. She put the two pictures in, clicking the button. It loaded slowly, with a little note at the bottom of the browser saying the morpher might not always work. Her jaw dropped.

The pictures, though a little blurred on one side due to the cat, combined their faces seamlessly. She immediately downloaded the image and sent it to Eiko.

**OMG OMG OMG OMG [morphersite_234324232123167.jpg]**

**Loveline342: WTF OMG**

**i know!! Omg**

**Loveline342: kiki theyre like identical twins wtfff**

**I think this is the lead we’ve been searching for**

**Loveline342: think so?**

**Yes**

Tahara wrote up her post, beaming with pride. This was huge. If this really was the real Akechi Goro, she’s finally found him. After four years, she figured out what happened to her beloved prince.

~~~~~~~~~

Akechi opened his blog while he was hanging out at Leblanc, waiting until Akira’s shift was over so they could go out to dinner for once. He scrolled through the comments, a couple catching his eye.

**NowiJynx: hey sapph, did you see that post on that other blog? Its nuts**

**Knd2313jf: omg herrr! lmao what a crazy bitch**

He blinked, not sure what they were talking about.

**WildAceSewing: What are you talking about, Nowi?**

He looked up as Akira got him a water, thanking him. He got a reply really fast, reading it.

**NowiJynx: oh u havent?? Oh man now i feel kinda bad. here [princegorofansite.blogon.com/A_Match]**

He clicked through to the link, seeing he was reading the most recent post on the fan blog for him. 

**Okay, look, I know it’s a bit out there, but this is a pretty solid lead if I’ve ever saw one.**

**My partner pointed out this blog’s picture [2394i32032.jpg] some time ago, but I wasn’t sure why back then. Note the profile picture is from here [wildacesewing.blogon.com]. They sew and they’re** **_super_ ** **talented, but that’s not the most interesting thing.**

**Then she sent me one of those endearing photos of Akechi’s smile [akechismile43(1).jpg] to compare.**

**Now, hear me out, this Sapph person’s face sort of bugged me for a while, and for what I thought at the time was no reason. But I finally just put the two pictures into one of those picture morpher sites out of boredom while my partner and I were going through my evidence document again.**

**[morphersite_234324232123167.jpg]**

**Despite the cat being in the way, their faces blended seamlessly with no change besides the obvious on Sapph’s side.**

**So, either our dear, sweet Akechi Goro has an identical twin he’s never told us about ever and has never been mentioned anywhere.**

**Or, the more likely conclusion, this “Sapph”** **_is_ ** **Akechi Goro. I can’t really prove anything right now, but I can’t really ignore this. I will continue digging to see if I missed anything, I may have to broaden my time frame for his disappearance, but that whatever I find will be covered in my next post.**

**So, “Sapph”, I’m keeping an eye on you.**

Akechi nearly dropped his phone. He scrolled down to read if anyone had already commented, noticing it was posted a couple of days ago. 

**GorosPrincess23: ok, so like i was on board w this mystery n all but this is a reach even 4 me :/**

**NowiJynx: wow. Wooooow. Ur crazy**

**Kifafe: of course it blends the faces thats what its supposed to do!!! Im getting 2nd hand embarrassment from this post... this is enogh internet 4 me 2day**

**Otio: ….lmao thjis is the saddest thing ive ever read… >.> **

**Knd2313jf: hows it feel to be the craziest bitch on the internet rn? Like poor sapph is just chillin and u try to convince ppl hes akechi??? lmaoooo**

Akechi rested his face in his hands, sighing in relief. No one was believing this girl, based on the long list of comments saying so. He ruffled his hair as he closed the blog, deciding he had read enough.

 

Dinner with Akira was fantastic. They went to a little Korean restaurant Akechi has been dying to go to since it opened, hearing great things about it. The two of them then took a long walk in the park, just enjoying each other’s company.  That night, Akechi got home, glad for the distraction from that post. He was still awake, since this would be the middle of his shift. He needed something to do before going to bed. He paced around his apartment, deep in thought. He caught a glimpse of his old suit in the closet, stopping. 

_ New project idea. _

He sat down at his table with Joker and the materials he needed. It was a rather simple design when he got right down to it. He stood up and took a step back, admiring his handiwork. He took a picture, making a little longer post than he would usually for his projects. He went to bed, hugging Joker close to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Spelling errors in user posts kept for realism sake. Nobody's got the time to spell correctly on the internet when there's other people to make fun of.


	5. Something Old

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tahara is determined to find more about Sapph after his response. Akechi spends as much time as he can with Akira before he goes home for the rest of his winter break.

Tahara narrowed her eyes, rereading the post Sapph wrote.

**Well, I can't say I'm not flattered that someone thinks I look like a celebrity. Or go as far as accusing me of being their identical twin or whatever. I'm not really anybody special though.**

**But I have to say, you did give me inspiration for my next project, so here’s the Detective Prince outfit. Cute, no? Looks just like Akechi's suit. This was so much easier, there's pictures of him everywhere to gather reference.**

**Until next time,**

**Sapph**

Tahara huffed, highlighting the entire post and copying it into a document so she can think of a response later. She noticed something else as she flipped back to her browser to close it.

**I'm not really anybody special though. ;)**

She narrowed her eyes at the hidden winky face. Was Sapph poking fun at her? Or was it something deeper?

_ I mean, that could be in reference to the fact I called him talented in my last post. _

Tahara closed her laptop, deciding she just needs to go for a walk somewhere to think everything through.

  
  


On the train, she caught part of a conversation behind her.

“Why are we going to the park again?”

“To people watch. We've been over this.”

“I'm only here because Sapph asked me to come with him.”

_ Huh? Sapph? _

Tahara snuck a look behind her at the three people, noticing a blond guy, a blue haired guy, and a brunette with a ponytail. She couldn't see the last person's face though.

“Because Kitagawa gets intense and I can't talk to him while he's drawing. You agreed to come in the first place.”

She watched the blond sigh, ruffling his hair. At one of the stops, the group gets off the train. She follows them, deciding this was her chance to learn more about this Sapph person.

~~~~~~~

Ryuji sat down on the bench first, sighing as he watched other people wander around the park. Yusuke and Akechi also sat down, Yusuke in between them, sketchbook out, sketching random people. Akechi had his bag in between his legs, digging through it for something. Ryuji saw someone duck behind a tree some distance away, staring at them. Akechi was playing with his phone, looking utterly bored. 

“Hey, I think that girl over there is staring at you, Sapph.” he said, leaning forward to look at him.

“She's been following us for the past twenty minutes, actually.” 

Akechi threw an arm over the back of the bench after putting his phone away. 

“And you didn't think to tell us?!”

“Not that it mattered, she's not really good at it. Gum?”

Ryuji stared at the open pack Akechi offered him, shaking his head. He shrugged, taking a piece for himself. Ryuji went back to staring at the girl’s general direction, sighing.

“You’re ridiculously relaxed about it, dude.”

Akechi blew a bubble, not answering. Ryuji noticed that Yusuke started a quick sketch of Akechi as he continued making as large a bubble as he could. It popped, Akechi finally deciding to answer him.

“I was used to it a while ago. None of them have really gotten very far, though.”

Ryuji picked up that he was avoiding mentioning he used to be a celebrity out loud.

“Still, don’t you find it kinda creepy?”

“Yeah, but what am I gonna do about it though? She hasn't really seen much. Just the three of us chilling on a bench.”

“Okay, first off, never thought I'd ever hear you say ‘chilling’. Second of all, aren't you worried she's recognized you?”

“Who would believe her? Akechi Goro has been practically dead for 4 years as far as public attention is concerned.”

Still, his voice was lowered, and Ryuji caught a hint of doubt. Akechi leaned back, looking up at the sky. 

“This is way too freakin’ calm, even for you.”

“I’ve learned freaking out just makes me more stressed. Do you think it's gonna rain soon?”

“I hope not, it'd ruin my art.” Yusuke piped up, annoyed at the very idea of rain.

“It looks like it might. We should get going soon so it doesn't rain on your sketchbook.”

“Hmph. Fine.” 

Yusuke closed his sketchbook with a sigh, standing up. The three of them walked on, deciding to duck into a little ice cream parlor right as it started downpouring.

“Oo, that was close.” Ryuji commented.

“Let's grab a table and milkshakes while we're here. There's still plenty of people watching we can do by the windows.” 

Akechi gestured, throwing his bag on one of the chairs at an empty table. The three of them sat down, just chatting and watching people deal with the rain.

~~~~~

Tahara was soaking wet as she stood under one of the trees in the park. 

_ Damn it, I lost him. _

She started to shiver as she stood there trying to find them again. She decided to call it quits and go home for the day. Her mother will be a little upset that she would be coming home soaking wet, but at least she came home as soon as she could.

After changing out of her wet clothes, she opened her laptop, deciding to message Eiko.

**I just saw sapph irl**

**Loveline342: wait, really?? did he see u? did u say hi?**

**No, I just followed him to the park where he was talking to 2 other ppl**

**Loveline342: so? wuts the verdict girl? Match?**

**I'm not sure, but seems like it. Like, he was the same height and everything**

**Loveline342: i mean, my older bro is the same height as goro too. Not necessarily proof**

**I know. I just need to do more research on this Sapph**

**Loveline342: gl kiki**

Tahara hummed, adding “Sapph" to the list of research she needs to do.

~~~~~~

Morgana was practically asleep on Akechi's lap as Akira finished up today's shift at Leblanc. He came over with two hot chocolates after closing up, giving one to Akechi as he slid in beside him, watching the snowfall outside the cafe windows. Morgana made an annoyed chirp as Akechi slid over to make room, before he went back to falling asleep.

“Tomorrow is your last day before going home, right?” Akechi asked.

“Yeah. I’m gonna miss you the whole break.”

“God, you're a dork.” he teased.

Akira kissed his nose, slipping his hand over his, smiling. 

“Oh, sheesh, baby you're so cold.” 

“What do you expect? It's winter and there's no heat in this cafe.”

“My room is bigger than your entire apartment.”

“And? My apartment has heat.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Akira leaned his head on Akechi’s shoulder, sighing happily. He wished this moment could last forever. 

“Man, you two need to get a room.” Morgana grumbled.

Akechi snorted, Akira sitting back up to shove Morgana off Akechi's lap.

“Hey! I was napping!”

Akira quickly half sat in Akechi's lap so Morgana couldn't reclaim it, spilling a little of his cocoa as he bumped the table.

“You are so petty, Akira. Bullying a cat?”

“Says you.”

“I'm not like that anymore, and you know it.”

Akechi sipped his drink, hiding a smile as Akira kissed his forehead. Morgana jumps up on the table, offended. Akira caught a glint of worry in Akechi's eyes as he stared outside.

“Hey, something bothering you?”

Akechi kissed him gently, putting his cup down so he could pull Akira entirely into his lap. He pressed the side of his face into Akira's chest, saying nothing. Akira ran fingers through his hair as he leaned back against the wall.

“I’m just...going to miss this while you're gone.”

“Goro, don’t you trust me with your problems?”

“Akira...”

“Sorry. It's just, sometimes it feels like I'm on the other side of a window from you when I want to help.”

“And you feel I'm not letting you help me? What makes you think I have a problem?”

“You're being oddly quiet right now. You're overthinking something, if I had to guess.”

“I am. Perceptive as always.” Akechi chuckled, giving his waist a squeeze. “I just think it's not as big a deal, and I don't like making you worry while we're apart.”

“I get more worried when you don't tell me.”

They sat in silence as Akechi was trying to find the words. He sighed, sitting up as he spoke.

“Someone was following me today. No one I recognized as Shido’s men,” He clarified as Akira got worried. “A girl. I'm not sure if she was simply curious about…”

He tapped his left eye, and Akira knew he meant the ring of discolored skin.

“But she was following us. Luckily the rain came and she lost us.”

“And you didn't want to tell me that?? Babe, that's such a big deal! What if she recognized you?”

“Akechi Goro has been dead for four years.” Akechi said, a little too sharply. “Besides, have you seen me? Not exactly the same old prim and proper and perfect Akechi anymore.”

Akira cupped his face, pressing in gently. Akechi looked up at him, waiting. 

“You're perfect to me.”

At that, Akechi laughed.

“Akira, you know what I mean. I'm not the stuck up, asshole, pretty boy detective anymore.”

Akira's next protest was silenced with a deep kiss. He rubbed his thumbs over his cheeks, processing everything that had been said.

“Your cocoa’s getting cold.” Akechi murmured.

“Mhm. I don't care right now.”

“Then I'm gonna drink it on you.”

“Not an asshole anymore my ass.”

Akechi chuckled as Akira slipped out of his lap, grabbing his mug. Morgana rolled his eyes at the couple, jumping back in Akechi's lap.

As they laid together in bed, Akira couldn't help but be awake, thinking about what Akechi said. It felt like Akechi still wasn't being completely honest with him and it was gnawing away at him. He stroked his hair, kissing his forehead.

“Mm, still awake?”

“Apparently, so are you, Goro.”

One of his garnet eyes opened, staring at him. He pulled Akira closer so he was half on top of him, rubbing circles on his back. Akira placed a hand over his heart, feeling it beat just a little too fast.

“Bad dream?”

“Hmm?”

“Did you have a nightmare?”

“No. Why, are you still worried about me?”

Akira’s heart silently sank as he realized Akechi just blatantly lied to his face.

“Always. But that's because I care too much.”

“You do. But it's cute and I love you for it.”

Akira stayed quiet until he felt Akechi finally drift off to sleep. He snuck downstairs, Morgana at his heels.

“What's up, Akira? You look upset.”

“Hm? Oh, just...I think he just outright lied to me.” He sat on the edge of a table, rubbing his neck. “I thought we moved past that part of our relationship. That we trusted each other to be honest.”

“Why do you think he lied to you?

“He said earlier he hates making me worried. But he usually tells me about his nightmares. I don't get it.”

“Usually doesn't mean all the time. Maybe he just didn't want to share this time?”

“Yeah, maybe you're right. I shouldn't overreact.”

The two of them went back upstairs, settling down to go to sleep.   
  


Akira and Akechi are walking around Shibuya when someone calls for Akira.

“Akira! Wait up!”

They turn to see Mishima running towards them. 

“Hey Mishima, long time no see.”

“Yeah, you too.”

Mishima looks at their intertwined hands and gets embarrassed.

“Oh, sorry, are you guys on a date right now? I didn't mean to interrupt.”

“No, no, it's okay. We're just walking around.”

Akechi just smiles at Mishima politely. Mishima holds out his hand, getting more awkward by the minute.

“Oh. Uh, I'm Mishima, it's nice to meet you.”

“I'm Sapph, and likewise.”

“Sapph? Like that sewing blog that got really popular on the Phan-site?”

“Oh, are you one of the Phans who linked it there? But, uh, yeah. That's me.”

“Well, I sort of am one, I suppose. I didn't post your blog, but I really like your work. It's really good. You're really good.”

“Thank you.” Akechi grins. “I've picked up a lot of tricks over the years.”

They all moved out of the general flow of traffic as they talked, standing near the alley that leads to Untouchables.

“How have you been doing, Mishima?”

“Great! It's nice to see you after 3 years though. My documentary is coming along nicely.”

“That's good to hear! It's nice seeing you too!”

Akechi tugged his hand as he stared off into the crowd. Akira turned, seeing that he looked worried.

“Um, I won't keep you any longer, you look like you're gonna go somewhere with your boyfriend.”

“Uh, yeah. We should catch up more. You have my number.”

“Yeah, I will. See ya!”

Mishima blends into the crowd. Akechi yanks Akira hard, pulling him into the arcade. They go to the far back by the pinball machines.

“Okay, ow!” 

“I'm sorry.” Akechi lets go, guilt all over his face.

“Is something wrong?” Akira asks, placing his hands on his shoulders.

“I thought I saw one of those tv reporters stare right at me. Sorry.”

Akira hummed, tapping his foot. They stayed to play pinball for a little bit, Akechi beating his high score by a landslide. They walked out, Akechi’s hand a bit shaky as Akira held it again. They were talking about where to go next when a woman approached Akira, a cameraman behind her.

“You two are teens that know about this whole blogosphere rumor mill! What do you think? Is Akechi Goro really out there making toy clothes or is it his identical twin?”

“I don't care about that stuff.” Akira said, trying to get away.

He could feel Akechi's grip tighten as the lady continued following them, partially hiding himself behind him. The cameraman said something to her and she butted in, separating the two of them.

“Whoa, hey!” Akira yelped.

“Hey, wait! Aren't you the blogger in question? How are you feeling about all this?”

“Uh…I…” Akechi backed up, rubbing the back of his neck.

She pressed in, holding the microphone in his face, undeterred by his lack of response.

“I'm obviously, uh, a nobody. Leave me alone.” 

“How can you say that when- wait, come back!”

Akechi ran off, Akira following close behind him, purposely bumping into the lady as a bit of payback for earlier. They ran back to the station, getting on the first train, then getting off at Chinatown. Once outside the station, Akechi was doubled over, gasping for breath. Akira gingerly placed a hand on his back as he straightened up again.

“Are you okay, Akira?”

“I should be asking you that. Also, I don't think this is as little a deal as you think it is.”

Akechi hugged his arms, looking down. He just leans into Akira, not saying a word. Akira slings an arm around his shoulders, kissing his forehead. He noted his skin felt fever warm.

“Okay, I get it. You don't wanna talk. How about we walk around while we're here, okay?” 

Akechi nods, letting Akira lead him down the street. They poked around a few stores before Akechi felt relaxed again. 

“I'm sorry.”

“For what?”

“I haven't been as open with you as I usually am.”

“You don’t have to apologize. It's just a little bump in our relationship. We can make this work.”

“Tch, the whole road work speech again?” he teased half-heartedly.

“Hey, it's a good metaphor, okay? Don't be so judgy about it.”

Akechi rolled his eyes, smiling. 

“But, really, are you okay? She got real close to you.”

“I almost went back to tv personality mode and blew it.” Akechi sighs, holding his hand tight. “She wasn't going to stop asking me questions, I could tell.” 

“...Maybe we should check to see if that made it on the news or something?”

“I hope not.”

They spent whatever time they had left together in Chinatown, Akira catching Akechi looking over his shoulder every so often. 

~~~~~~~

Akechi saw Akira off at the train station after he made sure he checked if he had everything. 

“Tell them I said hi, and that I hope they’re doing well.”

“I will. Love you.”

“Love you. Goodbye.”

Akechi waited until the train pulled away to leave for work. His shift was a blur to him, but he chalked it up to nothing out of the ordinary happening. Back home, he coughed once, pulling back his arm and fearing the worst. He didn’t see any of the black gunk, so he was relieved. 

_ Wait, why would I see that anymore? My medicine stops that stuff. _

He sighs, getting out of his clothes and going to sleep. He missed Akira already, but he knew that he would most likely be back for the summer again. 

The Metaverse was still so clear in his dreams. Like he was there again, like it still existed. He could pick out the garbled voices on the wind as he ran around, could feel parts of it shifting under his feet. This time, he could see a figure, blurred, far ahead of him. He ran towards it, but the figure would turn and run away from him, keeping the same distance. He ran through parts of that prison, just the briefest of glimpses, but he could recognize it. The figure was familiar, but he couldn't identify why. A flap of wings above him caught his attention. The guardian angels surrounded him, piercing him with their gazes. He could feel Loki and Robin Hood in him, but he wasn't able to conjure them, try as he might. 

“Are you ever enough?” One of them asked, voice booming and echoing.

He tried to talk back, but nothing came out of his mouth. In fact, it felt like he was missing his tongue.

“Nothing but a dangerous animal.”

“Better off dead, both of you.”

_ Both of us…? _

He looked around, but the figure from earlier was gone.

“...killed you when they had the chance.”

Akechi sat down with his hands over his ears to try and block them out. He heard laughter, growing in pitch before becoming a ringtone. He woke up, noticing his phone was ringing. He picked it up, his therapist calling.

“Hello?”

“Hey, you okay? It's fifteen minutes into our appointment, are you on your way?”

“Fifteen minutes?!” 

He looked at the time, noticing it was 1:15 PM. 

_ Shit. _

“Sorry, must've overslept. I can get there soon.”

“If you're sure you can make it. We won't have much time though.”

“I think that'll be fine.”

“Alright, see you soon.”

He quickly threw on some clothes, rushing out the door. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've edited this several times and real life obligations got in the way. I'm still not super happy with it, but I just want to move on to the next chapter. So I'm considering this done before I start endlessly nitpicking at it.


	6. Wildfire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Akechi is just trying to forget the accusations of being himself, Tahara puts more fuel on the fire on her own blog with every piece of "evidence", keeping the rumor mill going. He soon sees just how far out of control the rumors have gotten now.

_I just need to clear my head._

Akechi walked down to the train station, just letting his feet take him wherever. It was almost Christmas now, but he never really noticed before. Now it was just him thinking how alone he will be for the first time in the past few years. He had thought he would have gotten used to it by now, but it seemed almost unbearable this year. Shibuya was still bustling as he wandered, people doing last minute shopping. He felt his phone going off in his pocket, picking it up.

“Hey Sakura, you usually don't call. What's going on?”

“Actually, isn't me who wants you, but I just have your number. Here.”

“Hey kid, how are you doing?”

“Hi Sojiro-san. I'm just taking a walk, but I'm okay. Futaba said you wanted me?”

“Good to hear. But yes, I was wondering what your plans were for the 24th and 25th?”

“I…don't have any? Why do you ask?”

“Do you want to spend it with us?”

Akechi blinked. He was surprised to say the least.

“You still there kid?”

“...Why?”

“Well, I would feel bad if you spent it alone, y’know. I just thought I'd ask, you don't have-"

“Yeah. I would.”

“Great! See you then!”

“Wait, I don't know where you live.”

“Oh, I can get Futaba to show you when you get to Yongen-Jaya. And don't worry about getting either of us anything, your company is enough.”

“But-"

Sojiro hung up on him. He sighed, determined to actually get them something. There was a little time left before stores closed, after all.  


As promised, Futaba was waiting for him at the station. He held the carefully wrapped box in his hands, the gift too big to fit in his bag.

“Hey, I thought Sojiro told you not to give us anything.” She teased as they walked out.

“I would feel rude if I had brought nothing.”

“Sheesh, you make Akira look bad.”

“Is he that bad? I feel sorry for you two.”

Futaba opened the front door, letting him go inside first. Morgana ran up to them, excited.

“Hey! You're here! Get me anything good?”

“Mona,” Akechi rolled his eyes, taking off his shoes. “Don't you have someone else to bother?”

Futaba picked up Morgana without comment, who struggled for a moment before giving up. She led him to the kitchen where Sojiro was.

“I'm home. With guest.”

“Hey kids, dinner is almost ready. Futaba, can you show him to where he'll be sleeping?”

“Yes.”

Akechi followed her up to her room, where an air mattress sat on the floor.

“Are you sure?”

“Mhm. It'll be like a sleepover!”

She finally released Morgana, who glared at her briefly. Akechi put his bag down, tucked out of the way. They both went back downstairs.

“Um, where do I put this?”

“I told you that you didn't have to get anything. But the room out and to the left should be fine.”

Akechi put the gift down with the others he saw, coming back. Futaba was sitting at the table, it having already been set. He sat where she gestured to. He covered his mouth as he had a coughing fit, turning away as Sojiro came over with food. Akechi looked at his sleeve before he sat back up.

“Sheesh, that sounds like a nasty cold. Hope you’re not overworking yourself.”

“I’ll get over it soon enough hopefully.”

After dinner and talking for a while, everyone retired for bed. Akechi leaned against Futaba’s bed, Futaba laying over on her stomach. Joker was in his lap, free of clothes so the gold thread on him was visible.

“Still updating your blog?”

“Here and there, when I can. I haven’t been doing any sewing lately, so…” Akechi shrugs, yawning.

“You look tired.” Morgana says, promptly getting a pillow thrown at him by Futaba.

“Hey, no one _sleeps_ at a sleepover!”

“I'm just saying!”

“It's because of my cold. I'm usually working this late.”

“Sleeping is good for colds.”

“Annoying cats aren't as good for colds.”

“Hey!”

Futaba giggled as Morgana pouted at her. Akechi grins, scratching his ears.

“I mean, Akira was just here a few days ago, so I doubt lover boy here has gotten much sleep anyway.”

Akechi turns bright red and coughs a little. Futaba smirks, exchanging a glance with Morgana.

“Aren't you a little young to be thinking about that stuff? Besides, we don't do that at all!”

Futaba hums, leaning closer, smug.

“Mona, back me up!”

“Yeah, I can attest to the times I've been in the same room as you guys. But your apartment is a different story.”

Akechi shoves his face into a pillow, groaning. Futaba snorts, trying to stifle her giggling. He lies down, pulling the blanket up over his head.

“You guys are the worst. I'm going to sleep.”

“Aw, Akechi no. C’mon.”

“It's sleep time. Mona said so.”

“Since when did you take orders from a cat?”

“Since right now.”

 

They spent a good few hours talking more before both of them fell asleep. The next morning Akechi tiptoes downstairs as to not wake Futaba up. He sat down at the table, playing on his phone. He debated opening his fan blog, just to see if anything new had popped up, but he resisted the urge. His own blog gathered a few more comments, a couple here and there asking if he really was Akechi Goro’s twin like that blog had said, and he was just lying about it to avoid attention. Some others were asking more about his personal life was like, whether or not he was actually a boy, whether he had a girlfriend or a boyfriend. A handful of desperate questions asking if a girl like him would go out with a “man" like them.

“Oh, you're up early.”

Akechi jumped, looking up at Sojiro as he walked past to fiddle with the little coffee pot.

“Sorry for scaring ya, but I'm surprised someone who works the night shift would be up before nine.”

“Well, old habits die hard.”

“Hmm. Would you like something? I know you're avoiding coffee, but I might have some tea somewhere, I think.”

“Um, I can look for some and I'll have it if I can find it.”

Akechi poked around the kitchen as coffee brewed, seeing Morgana slip into an empty chair. Sojiro placed three mugs onto the table as he waited.

“Good morning.” Morgana yawned.

“Hey Mona.”

Akechi found one sad looking tea bag in one of the cabinets and pulled it out. He dropped it by one of the mugs on the table, looking for a kettle.

“Oh, one of those still left. I’ll be glad to finally be rid of those.”

“It’s tea, I’m not complaining. Do you have a kettle somewhere?”

“Should be in the cabinet right of the sink. It might be a bit dusty though.”

Akechi found the little silver electric kettle, pulling it out. He started filling it up with water from the sink, until he had enough to pour himself a cup. He placed it on the counter, plugging it in. He tossed the tea bag into the mug, taking a moment to tie the string to the handle while he waited for the kettle to turn off. Once it clicked off, he unplugged it carefully, pouring the water out with the same care. He carried the cup back to the table and sat across from Sojiro. They sat in silence for some time. Sojiro raised an eyebrow, but didn’t say anything as Akechi rubbed his eye in silence. Futaba ducked into the kitchen.

“Sheesh, does no one sleep late in this house?” She grumbled.

“Coffee?”

She sat down, pushing the empty mug towards him in response. Sojiro got up, pouring her a cup before sliding the mug back towards her. She drank it, making a face at the bitterness. Akechi was slightly horrified as she proceeded to dump six spoonfuls of sugar into her cup. Sojiro chuckled at his expression.

“Well, why don’t we at least exchange gifts while we’re sitting here.”

He got up, ducking into one of the other rooms. Futaba sipped her coffee, now pleased with its taste.

“Perfect.”

“That was an unnecessary amount of sugar.”

“I’ll have you know six spoonfuls is the perfect amount, thank you very much.”

Sojiro placed all the presents onto the table before he could retort. There was about 5 presents including the one he brought over for them. Akechi watched Futaba separate the presents, hiding a sting of jealousy behind a polite smile. Sojiro sat back down, drinking his coffee.

“Oh wait, one is missing.”

Futaba got up and ran upstairs. She came back down with a badly wrapped gift in hand, placing it in front of Akechi. He just stared at her, confused.

“Surprised you didn’t see it earlier. It’s for you!”

“Oh, um…”

Akechi sat up, rubbing the back of his neck. Futaba sat down, beaming at him. She looked at Sojiro, who just nodded. She unwrapped one of her own presents first, excitement distracting her from Akechi’s reluctance. Sojiro opened his as Akechi set his own gift aside for now, just watching them. They seemed really happy. Morgana’s present turned out to be the biggest of the three of theirs, a grey fuzzy cat bed. Futaba glanced over, seeing Akechi hadn’t even touched his gift.

“Well, aren’t you gonna open yours?”

Akechi was slow to unwrap it, still unsure if he was dreaming or not. It was a plastic storage container, one with six drawers and all clear so you could see into them. He picked it up, turning it around.

“I figured you could use it for your fabric stuff. I even picked it out myself!”

“Oh, thank you. This will really help.”

He was smiling as he placed the box back down. Futaba pushed his present in between her and Sojiro, waiting on him. They counted down to open it together, revealing a folded up, black fleece blanket with little pink cat paw prints all over it. The other side was a solid light grey color, the edges tied together to make one blanket with fringes.

“I know you said to not bring anything, but I wanted to give you something. I would’ve felt rude if I…”

“This is wonderful. Did you make this yourself?”

“I did. It wasn’t that hard, really. And it matches Mona.”

 

The three of them talked for a while before Akechi decided to go back to his apartment. Once inside, he freed the plastic organizer from its plastic wrap, placing it on the table and starting to put some of his fabric stuff in it. By the end of the hour, it was mostly filled with spools of thread, needles and the outfits. He stuffed some of the fabric scraps he figured he might have a use for in its own drawer. He paused briefly as he had another coughing fit. Joker was dropped onto his futon before he decided to get ready for bed. Looking into the mirror as he brushed his teeth, he paused, taking a moment to stare at his reflection closely.

_Mona was right, I do look tired._

He felt aches he hadn’t had in years as he headed to bed. Most of it was concentrated up the middle of his back and in between his shoulder blades. Where his most recent scars were.

_Now? Of all times?_

He grumbled as he settled down, the aches making him resort to lying on his stomach as if those wounds were still fresh. He had another dream that night, of trying to get somewhere but never quite knowing where he was supposed to go. He woke up exhausted, confused where he was for a moment.

~~~~~~~~~~

Tahara was hitting another dead end. There was literally nothing on Sapph anywhere. Even his blog was really devoid of information that could inform her about the sort of person he was. All she knew that he did in fact live in Tokyo, but anything else was dead silence after dead silence. No other presence, no other little tidbits. A ghost. It was infuriating.

_Guess I’ll just have to do some legwork._

She would go to Shibuya Station and just wait by the main entrance, just trying to spot Sapph again. It took a day or two before Tahara saw him again. She followed him down into the station and into the underground mall. He was browsing through a lot of the stores, looking confused. She could hear him talking, but he didn’t look like he was on the phone. She moved a bit closer, pretending to look through some stuff in order to hear him better.

“Look, I don’t know what he would like, okay? You would know him better.”

Tahara thought she heard a muffled meowing come from his direction.

“Because you were with him those three years, didn’t you notice any of his likes?”

Another meow.

“You’re hopeless. I’ll try somewhere else.”

Tahara glances over her shoulder as Sapph leaves with a huff. She caught the tip of black ears as they disappeared into his bag as he passed by her. She followed him to a different store, watching as he started asking questions to his bag, which meowed back at him on occasion. He responded as if he was talking to a person, but the other two people he was with the other day were nowhere in sight.

_Am I going crazy or is he talking to a cat? Why is there a cat in his bag?_

She keeps following him, waiting across the street as he stops at a convenience store, coming out with a couple of boxes. He walks until he ends up at the park she followed him to before, sitting on an empty bench. The backpack placed down next to him before he opens one of the containers. A cat climbs out of his bag just as he puts down what looks like some sushi in front of it.

“Tch, I can't believe you like the corner store sushi. It's not even that good.”

The cat meows at him as he opens a sandwich for himself.

_He_ **_is_ ** _talking to a cat. What the hell…?_

Tahara squints at him as he has a conversation with this cat as if it was actually talking back to him. She watched Sapph wrap the other half of his sandwich and put it away. The cat meowed at him again.

“I'll just save the other half for later, sheesh. I wasn't that hungry.”

The cat meowed once more before getting back in his bag. Sapph picked it up, making sure to throw the empty container away.  Tahara continued her investigation, watching as he poked around some stores in Shibuya. At one point, she lost sight of him. She swore under her breath. She turned around to see if he passed her and was face to face with her target. She jumped back.

“Did you need something from me?”

He looked annoyed. Tahara smoothed her skirt as she answered in an innocent tone.

“I'm not sure what you're talking about?”

“Oh. Well, you just seemed to be following me, so I was curious.”

_Abort mission._

“Well, you're mistaken, sorry. Gotta go, bye!”

She walked as quickly as she could without raising suspicion. Once she was a good distance away, she sighed, leaning against the wall.

_He noticed me following him. He's pretty sharp. He also sounds like Akechi. He even looks more like him up close. But the clothes? Talking to a cat as if he understood what it was saying? What is going on? My Akechi wouldn't dress and talk like that. But...maybe I'm right. He's in hiding, disguised like that. But why? What's in it for him?_

Tahara waited for some time before she saw him again. She followed him again, a fair distance away so he didn't spot her again as he ducked into a train. She got on at the far end of the same car, watching him get off at one of the stops. She continued, stopping when he went inside one of the apartment buildings. She took a picture of it, taking the time to write down the address in her phone notes before going home for the day. She messaged Eiko about her research today, adding notes to her document about Sapph. She had more questions than answers now, and she was more determined than ever before to get to the bottom of this. She writes up a post for her blog, not posting it yet, but as a draft for tomorrow.

~~~~~~~

“Did you really have to do that?”

Akechi rolled his eyes as he looked through some novelty mugs at a gift shop.

“Yes, I did. Do you really think she would've stopped if I didn't?”

“I don’t know.”

“Hey, what about this one? Think Akira would like it?”

“You really think he'd like a ‘go fish yourself’ mug?”

“That's why I'm asking you.”

“Akechi…”

“Okay, fine.” He puts the mug back. “Why did I even bring you if you're not gonna help me?”

“Because I've known him longer. Why do you even want to buy him something anyway?”

“Because he’s my boyfriend and I want to?”

“Did you guys fight or something?”

“What? No, don't be ridiculous. Just help me find something for him.”

“Well-"

Morgana is interrupted by Akechi having another coughing fit. He covers his mouth quickly. Morgana waits until he's stopped to start talking again.

“That sounds like it got worse since the other day. Are you sure you're okay enough to walk around?”

“I will be fine. It's just a cough.”

“If you say so. But I'm making sure you got to bed early.”

“How? I work nights, remember?”

“Right…”

“Fine. You're not being very helpful anyway. I'm just gonna go to my place and take a nap before work, how does that sound?”

“Sounds good to me.”

Akechi mutters under his breath as he leaves. He checks around once, and is relieved he doesn't see that girl. He gets on the train, quietly trying to figure out why that girl seemed familiar. He shrugged it off, knowing there's lots of people who look alike in the city.

As soon as he gets back into his building, he checks his mail before walking up to his apartment. He drops the mail on his table, seeing it is mostly fliers and not really important. Morgana is at his heels as he puts the ham sandwich from earlier into his fridge. He lays down on his futon after he's done, setting his alarm so he has enough time to get to work. Akechi coughs again, making Morgana jump a little as he sits down next to him.

 

He wakes up to his alarm, shutting it off as he gets up and starts getting ready for work. Morgana watches him from the futon.

“You look awful.”

“Thanks Mona.”

Akechi holds the bag open for him to jump into, having put a shirt between cat and his yukata. He leaves for work, locking the door on his way out. Morgana stayed surprisingly silent during his shift and on the way back.  


A few days later, he was going to stop by Leblanc that morning so that Morgana could be with Haru for the next few days. Akechi walked downstairs, about to step down into the lobby when the landlord’s wife stopped him. She was very sweet, had only been living in Japan for about a year, he’s met her a few times before, but her name escapes him at the moment. Her Japanese was not that great, but she had gotten better at it.

“Hey. Sorry, but might not want come down this way. People looking you? Cameras?”

He leaned forward to peek around the corner to see a bunch of paparazzi in the lobby, talking to the landlord. He seemed to be annoyed with the group of them trying to all but physically push their way past him.

“Thank you. Hope he will be okay.”

She nodded and gave him a thumbs up. He turned and went back up to his apartment, relocking it behind him.

“Hey, what’s going on? Why did we go back up?”

He ignored Morgana for the moment and opened the window, leaning out. The fire escape wasn’t too far of a drop. He opened the window as far as it could go, getting his legs out first. He turned so he was on his stomach, pushing his entire body out the window so he was dangling. He pushed up with his toes to close the window, narrowly avoiding his fingers as he left it open a crack. He let himself dangle again, mentally counting down from three before pushed off and landed on the fire escape on his hands and feet. Morgana poked his head out just as they were falling and screamed. He stood up, shaking his hands as he walked to the ladder. He climbed down the ladder, dropping onto the ground. Akechi threw his hood up, putting his hands in his pockets and slouching forward as he moved with the morning crowd. Luckily, Leblanc had no one in it except Sojiro. He threw the hood down, placing his bag gently onto a seat. Morgana leapt out of his bag.

“Are you crazy!? What were you thinking?”

“It wasn’t that far, Mona. You’re overreacting.”

He couldn’t help but notice his hands were shaking as he examined the red marks from the sill and the impression of the fire escape flooring.

“You could’ve warned me you were jumping to the fire escape!”

“It really isn’t that big a deal.”

“You jumped from the window! What if you missed?”

“But I didn’t.”

“You’re going to kill me one of these days.” He grumbled.

“Sheesh, you sure are talkative today.”

Sojiro gave Morgana a pat as he walked by. Akechi sat down as he got distracted. He coughed again, feeling how sore his throat had become lately.

“I hope you’re not overworking yourself.”

“I’m not overdoing it, don’t worry.”

Morgana stared at him as they waited for Haru, trying to read him.

~~~~~~~

Tahara read through her evidence document again. It really didn’t change much from when she first started. Sapph was still a huge mystery to her, and news sites didn’t have any reports on Akechi’s disappearance. However, a late night local news show had an on the street interview with Sapph, and the way he ran away from the reporter reeked of suspicion. She saw she had a new message, wondering if Eiko got back to her.

**WildAceSewing: Why are you doing this?**

Tahara stared at the message, trying to figure out who sent it and why that username was familiar.

_Oh, wait, that’s Sapph’s blog._

**The truth is out there somewhere, and I will find it. Akechi is too important to me to just disappear**

**WildAceSewing: Oh, celebrity crush, huh? You will not like what you’ll find, I promise.**

Tahara reread the last message twice.

**how are you so sure? was i right after all?**

**WildAceSewing: No, but you’re ruining my life. Please stop. I know I look like him but I’m not!**

**how am i ruining ur life? I am simply investigating and you happen to be prime suspect #1.**

**WildAceSewing: You can’t be serious.**

**I AM. You look and sound like him, and I’m pretty sure I’d recognize his voice. Besides, u ran from that reporter. suspicious, wouldnt u agree, AKECHI**

He didn’t respond for a little while, Tahara stewing in her smug assertion that she _was_ right about him. She turned her attention back to scouring news sources for anything recent relating to Akechi recently. She saved the link of the clip of Sapph’s interview to her document before she got another message.

**WildAceSewing: You seriously think that Akechi would run away from attention like that?**

**if he was disguised, probably**

**WildAceSewing: You are going to kill me. I’m begging you please stop this.**

**dont exaggerate to make me feel bad**

**WildAceSewing: I wish I was.**

She was about to send him one more message before Eiko sent her a message. She got distracted from that conversation for a little while chatting with Eiko. She sent the video link of the interview to Eiko, before she decided to send her screenshots of her recent conversation. She noticed she forgot to hit send, promptly doing so before taking screenshots and sending them to Eiko.

**pft yea rite. i will find out who u really are**

For good measure, she added them to her evidence document under “Sapph”.

**Loveline342: well damn girl**

**isnt it weird how confident he was that i wasnt gonna like wat i found tho? Like...rlly?**

**Loveline342: hes probably trying to scare u. He does sound exactly like akechi tho wow**

**rite?? except for that stutter :/**

They talked for a while longer before Eiko had to go to sleep. Tahara wished her goodnight, deciding she should go to bed now too. She posted the link to the interview on her blog, just titled “Circumstantial Evidence” and not much commentary besides that she thinks he sounds like Akechi.  


The morning found her new post exploding with comments, mostly everyone arguing with each other. Most of the comments were defending her, some were questioning what they thought they knew, some expressed surprise that Sapph sounded like a boy. Those people were in disbelief that he was a boy when others corrected them. She read through them all, occasionally responding to questions that were directed at her. She only felt slightly bad that she gave that one reporter Sapph’s building address, but now with the messages she has from Sapph, it pushed her further in her conviction that he was Akechi in disguise.

_Speaking of, did he respond yet? Wonder if his blog has updated?_

She opened the direct messages from him, seeing that he didn’t respond. She went to his blog instead, seeing nothing recent. However, his last post also had an explosion of comments on it.

**SunNews1: Are you really Akechi Goro? Why make doll clothes instead of resuming your career, Akechi?**

**NowiJynx: hey sapph, know you dont post a lot but have you seen her new post? So many new ppl here seem to believe her at face value.**

**Hurse: u do sound liek akechi...have u been lying to us the whole time??**

**GorosPrincess23: u know wut, shes right, u do sound like sweet akechi. who r u really????**

Tahara was glad other people were coming to her side, seeing the light. Now if only she could just get him to confess the truth.

~~~~~~~~

Once Akechi was in the alley of where his window was, he set his bags on the ground, putting his groceries in his backpack. New Year’s Eve was tomorrow, and he felt it would’ve been way too crowded at the stores then. Not having to worry about needing Mona to fit too made it a lot easier to pack in his stuff. Satisfied, he put both straps on so the weight was centered on his back and wouldn’t fall off. He leapt up, clutching the first rung of the fire escape, making his way up to below his window. He was glad that his apartment was an older brick building. Lots of handholds for him to climb. He paused, freeing a hand to open his window so he could get through. He leaned in, backing out a bit once he realized he would break the eggs in his bag and be stuck. He shrugged off the strap on his right arm before steadying himself again, moving his backpack in front of him as he leaned in to put it gently on the floor. He heard a knock at the door and someone talking, but was much too busy trying to move his backpack so he wouldn’t step on it. He dropped down one more time, giving himself space to swing up a leg onto his sill. He was halfway through the window when he heard his door open.

“Jesus Christ!” His landlord leapt backwards, stunned.

Akechi froze, making eye contact with him. They stared at each other for a moment before bringing the rest of him inside, closing the window to cut off the cold air. He moved to the door, hesitating a few steps before the frame.

“Um, come in?”

His landlord closed the door behind him quickly as Akechi took a few steps back, sheepish. He pinched the bridge of his nose as he turned to face Akechi, exasperated.

“You know, when the other residents were complaining about the noises coming from the fire escape this whole week, I didn’t expect it to be you.”

“I’m sorry. You said the paparazzi were still in the lobby, and I don’t want to be bothered by them.”

“Well, yes, but the solution is not to climb down the fire escape.” He went over to the window, opened it, leaned out, before closing it again with a slam. “That’s nearly a _five meter drop_.”

“I know.”

The landlord pinched the bridge of his nose again, sighing. Akechi tapped his foot, not sure if he was in trouble or not.

“Listen, I’m not mad. I just wished you warned me you could climb buildings. Also, once I can disperse those stupid paparazzi downstairs for good, you should be free to use the front door like you’re supposed to.”

“I really don’t know how they found me.”

“Oh, don’t worry, it’s not you they’re looking for, it’s the Akechi Goro _lookalike_ that supposedly lives here. Which, I’m not sure why they’re here either.”

“I’m sorry about this.”

“Stop apologizing, I know you’ve been trying to stay under the radar. I just wish I knew how to get rid of them.”

Akechi just shrugged as his landlord searched him for a hint.

“I was just making sure you weren’t feeling lonely being cooped up in here, but that’s moot as apparently you found a way out of here that doesn’t trigger the fire alarms. I ask that you be careful, okay? I’ll see you around.”

“Okay, thank you. See you.”

He sighed in relief as his landlord left, grabbing his backpack and moving to the kitchen. He put away his groceries, checking the carton of eggs to make sure none of them broke on his climb up. He felt his phone buzz in his pocket as he put the last of the groceries away, checking it.

**R: hey, u down 2 hang tmrw 4 nye?**

Akechi had to reread the text a few times before he understood it.

**Well, I’m not doing anything so sure. Who’s going to be there? Where are we meeting?**

Ryuji sent another text explaining everyone but Akira and Makoto was going to be there, and the location everyone was meeting. He messaged him back, saying he’ll be there.

 

Akechi was the first to arrive, the hood still over his head. He leaned against the railing, deciding to check his phone.

**K: wish u were here so i can kiss u at midnight :c**

**K: but ill just send these**

**K: <3<3<3**

Akechi grinned, blushing slightly as he texted him back. He saw someone approaching out of the corner of his eye so he kept the message short.

**Miss you. <3**

He breathed a sigh of relief to see it was just Ann and Haru. Ann waved at him when she saw him and he waved back.

“Hey! Haven’t seen you in a while.”

“Yeah, same to you. How are you?”

“Good, and you?”

“I’m fine.”

Morgana poked his head out of Haru’s bag as the three of them chatted until the others showed up.

“Well, looks like we’re just in time for the drop.” Ryuji grinned, leaning forward over the rail as the countdown started.

Akechi frowned as he turned his attention to watch. He coughed into his sleeve, trying to be quiet about it.

“Sheesh, you still have that cold?” Futaba asked.

“It’s a stubborn one, I guess.”

He could hear how hoarse his voice sounded. He turned away again, focusing on counting down to midnight. They all counted down the last five seconds, watching the crowd below erupt into cheers.

“Hey, are you sure you’re alright?” Haru pressed. “You’ve been awfully quiet.”

“Well...this is...kind of, well...still weird for me, I guess?” Akechi took a deep breath before he continued. “I spent every holiday alone, and...don’t get me wrong, this is nice...but it’s just...weird not spending it by myself, you know?”

Akechi stopped, not sure how to continue. Haru nodded, patting his arm, smiling reassuringly. Morgana climbed halfway out of the bag to get a closer look at his face.

“Akechi…”

“I know, I look awful. I get it, Mona.” He snapped.

There was a moment of everyone staring at him before he sighed.

“...Sorry. You’ve been saying that a lot and it’s kinda annoying.”

“Promise me you’ll get some rest soon, okay?”

“I’ll try.”

Akechi returned alone that night, climbing up the fire escape and into his apartment. He slept heavily and dreamed of nothing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally, this chapter was longer, but I split it into two for plot/my sanity's sake. I've been trying to work on my pacing, so splitting this chapter up was the solution. It's probably going to be some time before the next chapter is up due to some major rework and planning that has to be done to it.


	7. Among Thieves

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akechi still tries to handle the situation by himself, soon failing due to some complications. The Phantom Thieves sit him down and force an explanation out of him so they can help him.

Akechi woke up feeling worse than he did the night before, immediately throwing off his clothes and blankets as he felt like he was dying of heat. He stood up, coughing, staring at a wall until he stopped.

_ Cold shower. _

He stumbled his way into the bathroom, his legs still partially asleep. The hiss of the shower filled the space as he found a clean towel and stepped under the water. He shivered a little, getting used to it, trying to think of anything else. He ran his hands over his body, pressing in over some of his older scars, focusing on them. His hand traced over the one on his right shoulder, an old sword wound he got the day he made a deal with Robin Hood.

_ I wish I still had those two. This would be so much easier. _

He quietly picked through memories of his first brush with the Metaverse, avoiding the more painful reminders of learning his limits. He had plenty of evidence on his body for those. Akechi’s thoughts wandered to Akira, from upsetting to the more recent, fond memories with him. He leaned forward, the water running down his back, moaning quietly as he entertained dirtier thoughts of him.

_ I wish he was here right now. _

He couldn't really remember if he ever had a high sex drive even before the medicine. Probably the one night stand he had with Akira before turning himself in years ago was the highest it's ever been. They've tried to have sex a few times before recently, but it never quite worked out like they wanted it to. It was because of him, despite how much Akira insists that it isn't his fault. He straightened up afterwards, letting the water run down his face. 

 

“Are you sure you'll be okay by yourself?”

“I'll manage, Sapphire. I've done it before. Ohaya and some of your admirers will be a bit disappointed, but your health comes first. Get well soon, dear.”

“Thank you, Lala-chan. Goodbye.”

He dropped his phone onto his bed, sighing. He hadn't gotten dressed yet, towel wrapped around him, sitting on the edge of the bed. He was at least getting used to free climbing again, his muscles ache less every day. He wasn't sure how long he'll be able to until one of the paparazzi noticed him. He got dressed, taking the time to put Joker into Akira's thief outfit afterwards. He decided to go out for the day, climbing down to street level and hiding his face. He couldn't help but to keep checking over his shoulder, paranoid.

~~~~~~~

Akira said his goodbyes to his parents as they dropped him off back at college. He had hoped that they would let him take the train back so that he could call Akechi on the way, but his parents really insisted on dropping him off. He was the first one back in his dorm, dropping his stuff on his bed before going back downstairs. He pressed the phone to his ear as he started putting some food away.

“Hello?”

“Hey baby. Did you miss me?”

“Of course I did. Still at home?”

“No, I'm back at college. Have it all to myself for now actually. Classes start soon.”

“That's good. Still wishing for that midnight kiss?”

“Yes, but there's always next year.” He paused, picking up on how Akechi sounded. “You sound really sick. Are you okay?”

“Yeah, it's just a bad cold. I'll be fine, don't worry.”

“I mean, I could come up if-"

“Akira, I've had colds before. I'll be okay, I swear.”

Akira sighed, ruffling his hair. They talked for a little longer before Akechi had to go. Akira was a little worried about him, but he chose to leave it for now.

~~~~~~~

Mishima scrolled through the Phan-site’s newest thread with increasing worry.

**Thread: anyone know sapph irl?**

**NowiJynx: hey im really worried about sapph. I sent a pm but i havent heard back and its been a few days. Im not sure anyone knows WildAceSewing on here personally, but i figured its worth a shot.**

**AnaniMouse: ??? wats going on?**

**NowiJynx: This [princegorofansite.blogon.com/circumstantial_evidence] [wildacesewing.blogon.com/ladythief]. Read the comments on sapph’s most recent post after the akechi blog. Poor dude is being harrassed and accused of being akechi? Its bizarre tbh**

**AnaniMouse: i mean i see where some ppl are coming from but cmon rlly? Just bc they sound alike?** **edit: didnt realize they also look alike. I mean…**

**Minty: ??? im p sure that is akechi like cmon the facts are there :/**

**NowiJynx: i swear to you sapph is not >:/ and that proves nothing**

Mishima scrolls through the resulting argument, seeing it only ended about three minutes ago. He read through the blog and comments, feeling awful on Sapph’s behalf.

_ I hope Akira’s boyfriend isn’t in trouble. _

**Don’t worry, ill check up on him. I know him**

Mishima gets off the train at Shibuya. He was fine taking a bit of a detour today to see if Sapph was out and about. He would run into him eventually. He stopped by the alley that led to Untouchables, checking his phone one last time before continuing the search.

**NowiJynx: thank you admin. Please tell us if sapph’s okay.**

Mishima took a step out as he put his phone away, accidentally bumping right into someone. 

“Oh, sorry, didn’t see you.” Mumbled the hooded figure.

“Sapph?”

“Oh, hi. Mishima, right?”

“Yeah. Hey, are you okay?”

“Um, well...can you come with me right now?”

“Uh, sure, why?”

Sapph turned away and walked towards Shibuya Square without answering. Mishima quickly followed him, not wanting to lose him in the crowd. They went into the underground mall, Sapph stopping and pulling his hood down. Mishima noticed the dark circles under his eyes and how his hands shook slightly.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m pretty sure the girl behind that damn fan blog has been stalking me.”

“For real? Why haven’t you told anyone?” 

“I’m not sure they would believe me.”

He was looking around them, searching for something. 

“So why are you here instead of hiding?”

“Need to talk to her face to face. Tired of this.”

“Does Akira know?”

“No, and I’d prefer to keep it that way.”

“I’m sorry, what?”

“I...oh, there she is.”

He glared into the crowd, moving towards his target. Mishima barely could keep up.

“Oh, we meet again.” 

The girl brushed some black bangs out of her face and flipped her hair back as Sapph stopped in front of her. Mishima stood next to him, unsure what Sapph was going to do.

“Stop stalking me.”

“I told you before, I’m just investigating my prime suspect.” 

“I am  _ not _ Akechi! You are absolutely crazy.”

“I must be close to the truth if you’re acting out like this.”

Sapph growled in his throat. Mishima stepped in between them.

“Sapph…”

“You are literally ruining my life.”

“Just come clean about who you are!”

“I’m not Akechi Goro! I am not his twin! I just want to be left alone!”

“You’re a liar.”

“What is wrong with-” He whipped his head around, his voice dropping into a whisper. “Yakuza.”

Mishima looked where he was staring, seeing two scary looking men come towards them, staring right at Sapph.

“Sapph, run.”

Sapph bolted, leaving the girl and Mishima behind. The two men started running towards them.

“What-?” 

Mishima grabbed the girl’s wrist and pulled her, bumping into one of the men hard enough it made him stumble.

“You little brats!” He spat after them.

Mishima let go as they kept going, running up the stairs and weaving in and out of the crowd. He lost sight of the girl, but he wasn’t sure if Sapph was safe or not. He quickly began texting Ryuji, knowing that he was best friends with Akira and would probably have his phone number.

~~~~~~

Akechi kept running, knowing the next train was about to leave in the next few minutes. He jumped the turnstiles, getting the officer to yell after him, but he didn’t care. The door was just closing as he ran in, stumbling and falling onto the floor.

“Watch it kid!” One of the other passengers snarled at him as he got up.

He turned to see the two men from earlier swearing as the train started pulling away. He quickly took out his phone, texting the group.

**Is there anyone out and about that can hide me?**

**S: me mona and haru are at akihabara. Whats going on?**

**Being chased. Coming your way.**

He shoved the phone in his pocket, trying to catch his breath. He was going to need it. As soon as the doors opened at the right stop, he pushed his way through the crowd, rushing up the stairs. He looked around to see if the men were following him before he left the station, pulling out his phone. He texted Futaba directly, noticing the several unread messages from the group chat.

**Where are you?**

**S: Electronics store. well keep an eye out 4 u**

Akechi shoved his phone in his pocket again, hurrying inside the store. He wandered through the aisles until he saw Futaba. He rushed over to her, Futaba responding by grabbing his arm and pulling him into one of the less populated aisles of the store. She threw her hoodie at him, and he quickly put it on, zipping it up and throwing both hoods up. It was a bit too small for him, his hoodie was a little too big on Futaba, but he didn’t care. She dragged him over to Haru, who handed him a pair of pink heart shaped glasses. He put them on, not even caring how weird it looked. The three of them moved to the far back corner of the store.

“Are you okay? Are they still following you?” Futaba asked.

“They missed the train, but I don’t know if they know I’m here.”

They waited until Akechi could control his breathing again before they started walking around. Akechi kept looking over his shoulder. They pulled into the arcade briefly, going into the quieter part where there were benches and sitting down. He felt his phone buzzing in his pocket, and he looked at it to see it was Ryuji.

**R: misihma was rlly freaked out abt u n so is every1 else r u ok?? Wat happened?**

**Fine.**

He put the phone away, his fingers not cooperating with him to make a longer text to explain. The three of them sat in silence for a moment.

“Back to Leblanc?” Futaba suggested.

“Yeah, yeah let’s go.” 

They made their way out of the arcade, getting to the train station unharassed. 

~~~~~~

Tahara ran up the stairs into Shibuya Square, nearly falling over as she tries to stop herself from bumping into someone. She looked behind her, looking if anyone was following her. She didn't see the blue haired boy, Sapph, or the two men from earlier. She moved to one of the little benches, sitting down to catch her breath.

_ What the hell was that? _

She smoothed out her uniform as she tried to process everything. Those were big men, who Sapph seemed to think were yakuza. He seemed pretty paranoid though, constantly looking over his shoulders during their conversation. His friend had grabbed her wrist and bumped into one of them before they disappeared into the crowd. He let go of her and they split up, hopefully not being chased by one of those men. 

_ Were they really yakuza? What would yakuza want with him? _

Tahara stood up, deciding she would just go home for today, do homework. She notices how badly she was shaking when she went go lock the front door behind her.

~~~~~~

At Leblanc, Sojiro raised an eyebrow at the three of them as they came in, noting how Akechi was dressed. He handed the borrowed glasses and hoodie back to them as he made a beeline for one of the booth seats facing the door. He looked scared.

“Are you okay, Akechi-kun?” Haru slipped into the seat across from him.

“This has gotten really bad.” He whispered. 

Morgana jumped out of Haru’s bag and down into the spot next to him, putting a paw on his leg. They waited until he could find the words to explain.

“I don’t know how, but there’s paparazzi at my apartment building. Someone found out where I lived and told them I was Akechi’s lookalike, I guess. I don’t know why. The front lobby has not been crossable for me for some time.”

“Wait, is that why you jumped down to the fire escape?”

“Wait, what does Mona mean you jumped down to the fire escape?” 

“I’ve been getting in and out of my apartment by using the fire escape.”

“You what?” Sojiro pulled out his phone and started dialing. “Okay, you know what, I’m calling Akira.”

“What, why does he need to know?”

“Akechi, you had people following you today! This is getting out of hand.”

“Well, I lost them.”

“We need to talk about this seriously.”

“Oh, now I’m making sure Akira comes up.” He turns towards the door. “Hey Akira, your boyfriend is not doing great right now, and you should come back here as soon as you can. He’s gonna stay here for the time being.”

“Why? I can still get into my apartment.”

“I am  _ not _ having you climb the  _ fire escape _ anymore. You’re going to hurt yourself. Yes, it’s a bit of an emergency so if you can get here-”

“But I’m not going to hurt myself by climbing!”

“You are staying here and that’s final! Do I make myself clear?” Sojiro snapped, covering the mouthpiece of the phone.

Akechi flinched and sat up straight, folding his hands in front of him on the table. He had the old mask up on his face, pensive and carefully blank. 

“Yes sir, understood sir.”

Sojiro turned back to the phone, and as soon as he got engrossed in the conversation, Akechi snuck up the stairs without saying anything. Morgana followed him, worried.

“Akechi?”

He was sitting on the bed, the blanket on top of him, shaking violently, staring at the wall. He jumped up, poking him, but Akechi pulled away, the blanket drawn tighter around him. Morgana slowly backed down the stairs to the landing. Haru and Futaba were at the bottom, silently asking Morgana if they should go up. He shook his head, walking the rest of the way down. They sat back down, worried and shocked. They quietly whispered among themselves what they should do until Sojiro hung up, turning back to them.

“He’s gonna come up and-... Where’s…?” 

“I think you shook him pretty bad when you snapped at him.” Haru murmured.

“Yeah, I’ve never seen him shut down that quickly.” Futaba added. “He’s upstairs and wants to be alone right now.”

“Oh. I didn’t mean to...” He stopped himself and sighed, knowing that apologizing to them was pointless.

“Let’s give him a day. We all need to come together and talk about this as soon as Akira gets here.”

Morgana crept back upstairs to check on him. He was lying down curled up in a ball now, still covered with the blanket. He climbed onto the couch, deciding he would keep an eye on him every once in a while until Akira got there.

~~~~~~~

Akira had sent so many texts once he got out of class, the crowd pressing him out of the way. The group chat was just filled with his questions nobody else could answer. Akechi stopped responding to the group. He started to move again, remembering Jin would most likely be taking a nap, so he could call Akechi without being interrupted. 

**has any1 gottwn ahd of him??**

Once outside, he started calling him as he went back to his dorm. 

_ Please be ok please be ok please be ok. _

“Hello.”

“Hey, Ak-"

“Sorry I've missed your call, you can leave a message at the tone and I'll-"

Akira hung up and redialed. He stepped inside, tossing the bag into the living room. Fuki jumped, but he didn't even see her, starting to pace.

“Please pick up, please pick up…”

He got the answering machine again. He hung up, called him again. Fuki watched him as he nervously muttered to himself.

“Fuck, machine again.”

He rapidly texted the group again, trying to figure out what happened. No one that was active in the chat knew what was going on.

“Akira, what's wrong?”

He jumped, nearly dropping his phone. He made eye contact with her.

“I don't know. My boyfriend said he was being chased and needed to hide and now he's not answering me or anyone apparently.”

He sat down across from her, taking his glasses off and rubbing his eye. He heard his phone buzz, picking it up to check.

**R: hes fine dw**

**R: nothing else outta him tho**

“Okay he's okay, maybe?”

He put his face in his hands, groaning. Fuki sat next to him, putting a hand on his knee to comfort him.

“Hey, at least you know he's okay, right?”

“Yeah, that's good. I just want to hear his voice though. Jin still asleep?”

“Yeah, I wanted to go get dinner with him. Are you okay?”

“I'm just really worried about him. He's been sick and now...this?”

Fuki asked about his professors after a long silence. They started talking about the first week of classes now that it was over, how they think they'll do, how much the class might have for work. It was a good half hour before his phone rang. He picked it up immediately, not even checking to see who it was.

“Hello? Babe-”

“Hey, Akira,”

“Oh, Sojiro.” he mouthed at Fuki, listening.

He heard Akechi say something about his apartment in the background.

“I’m not having you climb the fire escape anymore.” He heard as Sojiro pulled away.

“Fire escape? Sojiro, is it serious?”

“Yeah, it's a bit of an emergency, so if you could get up here-"

He got interrupted again, Akechi very adamant about not hurting himself. He heard Sojiro snap at him right before he covered the mouthpiece. Akira flinched at the tone. When Sojiro returned to the conversation, it was very quiet in the background. He could hear Morgana say something, but it was muffled.

“I'll come as soon as I can. Promise.”

“He’ll probably feel better when he sees you.”

“What happened? Do you know?”

“I don't know, Haru and Futaba are here though, they brought him back here. But I'm sure they'll explain it to you.”

“Okay, I'm coming, I'll stay for the weekend at least.”

“Alright, see you soon.”

Akira ran upstairs with his bag, making sure the door didn't slam. He unpacked his books and stuff, putting in some clothes for the weekend. He softly closed the door behind him, stopping to say goodbye to Fuki before he left.

“Good luck, hope he gets better soon.”

“Thanks.”  
  


One nerve wracking train ride later, he switches to get to Yongen-Jaya. The stop has him pushing his way past people to get put, rushing up the stairs and down the narrow streets to the cafe. He bursts in, staring at the lack of people inside. It dawns on him that it's a good hour or so past closing time.

“Upstairs.” Sojiro murmured. “Sent the other two home for now. Late.”

Akira moves upstairs, tossing his bag onto the landing. Morgana was no where in sight as he climbs.

“Goro, are you okay?” He calls up.

He gets tackled once he reaches the top, nearly tumbling down the stairs with Akechi. He pulls back a moment, tugging Akira upstairs.

“You're here.” He breathed, peppering his face with kisses.

“I am. You okay?”

He was being pulled backwards towards the bed, Akechi stopping a moment to take off his own shirt before going back to kissing him.

“I don't want to think right now. Please?”

Akira was on top of him, both pausing. His shirt was halfway off, Akechi looking up at him expectantly. He knew that Akechi wanting sex didn’t happen often, and it was tempting to follow through, to ride it out with him before Akechi lost interest. He wanted answers, but he knew the likelihood of getting anything from him right now was slim.

“Yeah. Okay. I can do that.” He murmured, getting right back to the moment.  
  


The morning had Akira regretfully untangling himself from Akechi, still asleep next to him. He checked his messages while coming back up. 

**H: group meeting today?**

**yea. 4 the best**

He settled back in bed right as Akechi started stirring. Akira brushed his hair out of his face as he opened his eyes halfway.

“Sleep well?”

“Better.”

Akechi’s fingertips ghosted over his skin as he rolled half on top of him, kissing the dark scar around his neck and upwards along his throat. Akira placed his hand over his mouth as he started making out with him, his eyes opening again to focus on him.

“Goro, what is going on?”

He said nothing, turning away to cough into his arm for a little while. Akira noticed how dark the bags under his eyes were, the way he slightly shook. He sat up, accidentally knocking heads with Akechi as he turned back around. 

“Everyone is coming over, aren't they?”

“Because we need to talk about this. So we can help you.”

“Get Mishima here too. I...owe him an explanation and my gratitude.”

“Oh, uh, sure. I'll tell everyone.”

“Okay.”

He got up, grabbing clothes and just putting them on, not caring if it was his or not. Akira sent a different text to the old group without his boyfriend as he saw Akechi go downstairs. 

**makoto im sure ur busy right?**

**M: Yes. I'm at school right now.**

**is sae busy today?**

**M: You'll have to ask her yourself**

**R: why sae?**

**M: I'm assuming it's because Akechi knows her better, and vice versa.**

**yes exactly. Ill text her in a moment**

**F: fill me in when i get there**

**well just wait 4 u dw abt it**

Akira sent her and Mishima a text, deciding he should get dressed as well. Downstairs, Akechi was sitting at the bar, Sojiro glancing between the two of them as Akira caught the last bit of an apology.

“I know you didn't mean to. Just my gut reaction, really.”

“Good morning, Akira.”

Akira sat next to Akechi, biting back the million questions he wanted to ask him. He concentrated on eating breakfast, watching Akechi every now and again. He had gotten up and started pacing, talking under his breath. He was deep in thought. He decided to sit down in one of the booths and take out his phone to play with it. 

“He explained all of you were having a meeting, so the cafe will be open after you guys are done.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

Akira slid in next to him after he was done, offering up his hand. Akechi laced his fingers with his, dropping his phone onto the table. He covered it with his free hand, taking a few deep breaths.  
  


Mishima was the last to show up, a few minutes after Sae did. The relief when he saw Akechi sitting there next to him was immense. 

“Oh, thank god you’re okay! I was really worried about you when I didn’t see you.” 

“Uh, hey. Glad you’re okay too.” 

Akira felt Akechi shift against him as he spoke, not looking at Mishima. He grabbed his phone as Mishima continued, Akira turning his attention back to his friend.

“What was all of that yesterday? Is that the girl who runs that blog that thinks you’re Akechi Goro? She really is nuts, huh? But uh, a lot of your fans were worried about you on the Phan-site, I wasn’t sure what to say so…”

Akira saw that he had a new message, opening it.

**B: Do you trust him?**

Akira made eye contact with his boyfriend, nodding. Akechi placed the phone on the seat next to him, looking up at Mishima.

“I haven’t said anything, if you’re wondering. But all this because some crazy fangirl thinks you’re Akechi Goro? I can’t believe people even believe her.”

“Well, actually,” Akechi cut in, folding his hands in front of him to stop himself from fidgeting. “She’s right. I really am Akechi Goro.”

Mishima squinted at him, tilting his head.

“ _ You’re _ Akechi?  _ That _ Akechi Goro? The Detective Prince of-?”

“Don’t call me that!” He snapped. Then quieter: “I’m not a detective anymore.”

“Akechi.” Akira bumped his shoulder into him gently, reminding him.

“Sorry.” He mumbled. “I asked Akira to invite you so I could thank you properly for yesterday.”

“Wait...those really were yakuza then?”

“Yeah, I recognized them. That was both stupid and really brave of you. I owe you one.”

“You recognized them?!” Ryuji shouted.

Akechi flinched at the yell, straightening up quickly. He moved his hands to the edge of the seat, gripping tightly. Ryuji stared at him.

“What would yakuza want with you anyway?” Mishima asked.

“Revenge, really. I did kill Shido after all, they lost a top political ally.”

“I...hold on, what!?  _ What?!" _

“Okay, stop. Start from the beginning of this whole mess.” Akira said, quieting everyone down. “Will you please explain what’s going on?”

“This is going to sound really conceited, but…”

They listened as Akechi explained the whole situation, ending with the fact that paparazzi have been practically camping out in the lobby of his apartment building.

“So I’ve been climbing up and down my fire escape to avoid them.” 

“What the hell, Goro?”

“I wasn’t going to hurt myself by doing it. I’ve been climbing for years now.”

“A five meter drop, Akechi!” Morgana yelled.

“You say that like I’m not aware of it.”

“Is that why you didn’t want to tell Akira any of that?”

“You weren’t planning on telling me at all? Babe, what?!”

Akechi gestured vaguely and then shrugged. Akira glared at him, biting his tongue before he says something he’ll regret.

“I thought I could handle it.” He leaned forward, touching the ringed scar around his eye. “Maybe I should just admit it and get it over with.”

“No! I am  _ not _ letting you do that, oh my god!” 

“She’s not going to stop until she gets what she’s looking for. Besides, what if they come after all of you? It won’t take very long at all, I m-”

“Akechi, I am not letting you just give up and kill yourself! Not when you’ve changed so much!”

“I haven’t really changed all that much, really. This is the only way that makes sense, I don’t think she’ll be convinced otherwise.”

Everyone else started cutting in and arguing with him, Sae staying silent as she watched Akechi. She saw Akechi coughed into his sleeve, looking at it and quickly pressing that arm against his side before continuing the conversation. Her voice quietly cut through the arguments, stopping all of them at once.

“Goro, have you been taking your medicine lately?” She asked in a gentle tone.

“My…?” He stared at her before it dawned on him. “Shit. What time is it? What day?”

“Take your medicine. I don’t want to see you hospitalized again, Goro.” 

“Bag. Bag, where is-?” 

He stood up, throwing a hand over his mouth as he suddenly looked nauseous.He sat back down again, leaning forward, eyes closed. Akira got up, already heading upstairs.

“I’ll get it.”

“When did you stop taking it?”

“I...don’t remember.” 

Akira came back down with the bottle and a water, handing both to him. Akechi promptly took it, feeling Akira sit back down next to him.

“How long will it take to work?” He asked.

“About an hour.”

“An hour?”

“Faster was really bad.” He murmured.

“Do you know anything about this girl?” Futaba ventured.

“I...might have a name, but I’m not going to give it to you. I don’t even know if it’s her name or not.”

“What’s the harm in giving us a name to work with?”

“I know the type of people the Phantom Thieves are.” He grumbled. 

Mishima was shocked, looking around at all of them for an explanation. No one got the chance to explain, as Sae started asking him very detailed questions about the past few months. He answered some of them precisely, some he mentioned he was blurry about the details. Progressively he was getting more and more tired, leaning on Akira and struggling to keep his eyes open.

“Alright, I’m getting you to bed. C’mon.”

Akira pulled him up, Akechi not resisting as he was half carried up the stairs. As he was helping him into bed, Akechi suddenly had an iron grip on his wrist, tugging him down.

“Stay with me?”

Akira sighed, letting Akechi wrap him into a hug and pull him down. Akira kept his hold loose, cupping his face.

“Goro, please. We need something.”

“I don’t want you guys ending up harassing some innocent person.”

“If I promise none of us will? We need a place to start.”

Akechi nestled his head under Akira’s chin, saying nothing. He yawned, closing his eyes.

“Tahara Akiko.”

“Hm?”

“That’s the girl I remember trying to stalk me years ago. My moral compass wasn’t fucked up enough back then to press charges on a girl no older than fourteen.”

“Would Sae know?”

“Maybe..? Ask.”

Akira kissed the top of his head, waiting. He heard Akechi start to snore, carefully getting up and going back downstairs. Everyone was talking amongst themselves on what to do. Ryuji had pulled Mishima aside and looked like he just finished explaining things to him.

“He gave me a name.” 

“Well?”

“He isn’t sure, and I promised him we wouldn’t harass her. But he thinks her name is Tahara Akiko. He said that was someone who tried to stalk him before.”

“That...does sound familiar, actually.” Sae hummed thoughtfully. “I can check if it’s still in the records, though I’m surprised he even remembers that, of all things.” 

“You mentioned he was hospitalized once. When did that happen?” Ann leaned back, crossing her arms.

“When he was in prison, he wasn’t taking his medicine. They didn’t know what was wrong with him, he passed out and the medic on call there panicked since his heart rate was changing so rapidly. I only know because I was apparently still his emergency contact.”

“How long into his sentence was that?”

“A month or so? I’m not sure, honestly. But maybe we should tell Takemi so she can monitor him now. Did any of you notice any changes in him?”

“Hey, Yusuke.” Ryuji turned to face him. “He said something about freaking out about the girl following him before would only make him stressed out more. Didn’t that seem odd to you?”

“Hmph. I did notice he mentioned the ‘more’ part, but I didn’t think much of it.”

“In any case, he told me he noticed the girl then following us that day like twenty minutes before I did, but he was so calm about it. It was kinda weird.”

“Oh, that’s why he stopped taking his medicine then.”

“Huh?”

“There were a lot of times when he was just starting that he would be given some high profile, short timeline cases to solve. He tends to just focus on the case, and anything else that wasn’t important to the case he would forget entirely. I’ve had to remind him several times what day it was or to eat and take a break.”

“So he stopped taking his medicine because he is too focused on what’s stressing him out?”

“Essentially.”

“Well, that’s not good. If he’s too stressed out, he might not even take more of his doses when he needs them.” 

“Look, I do have to get back to the office at some point. I will check the files for you and see if what he said matches up. I’ll leave it in your hands.”

They watched Sae leave.

“Now what? We can’t let Akechi go back to his old self, not when his life is in danger.” Akira crossed his arms, worried.

“If we can find a picture, I’m sure I could recognize her.” Mishima piped up. “I did see her face, after all.”

“Okay, that’s a start. I’ll start looking up the name to see if she has popped up anywhere else. We should also go through both of their blogs and the Phan-site too.”

Futaba opened her laptop after moving to the booth. She motioned Mishima to sit down next to her to help. Everyone started talking to figure out when exactly he stopped taking his medicine.

“Hey, you mentioned his heart rate was kinda fast that one night, right? When you were worried he was lying about having a nightmare?”

“Oh, yeah. I thought he was. Fuck, that might be around when he stopped. Three weeks ago? Before I went home for the rest of break?”

“Sounds about right.”

“Okay, maybe we need some time to get Akechi to at least delay when he becomes his old self again. I should talk to Takemi about it. We should try to come up with a game plan once we figure out who’s behind that blog.”

“Sounds good to me.”

“So...unanimous decision?”

“Yes. Let’s do this.”

Akira was the last out the door, leaving Mishima and Futaba to their conversation. He ducked into the clinic, giving Takemi a half wave.

“Hey Akira. Something wrong?”

“Yeah, about my boyfriend. He stopped taking his medicine three weeks ago and just took some today, will he be okay?”

“He’ll be okay. He probably won’t be very responsive or eat for the next few days, and will not really have a lot of energy, but I can assure you he’ll be alright.”

“Okay, thank you.”

Back at the cafe, he sat on the edge of the bed, watching Akechi sleep.

_ I’ll make sure he gets better no matter what. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another big chapter, but this was a good rework of what it was originally.


	8. Wax Wings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the reminder of painful memories, feeling cooped up, and the stress of the entire situation, Akechi is not handling it very well. The Phantom Thieves figure out the best way to try and solve this problem without powers.

“Was I not what you wanted?” 

Akechi gave a sideways glance at human Joker, fists clenched. The voice was just slightly off from the real thing.

“Why did you settle for a pale imitation of me?”

“Fuck off, Yaldabaoth.”

He didn’t have to turn around to know where he was. He was familiar with the chill of the interrogation room. Blood coated the floor, Yaldabaoth causing ripples as he moved around. The door didn’t have a handle on it, but that didn’t matter. He just had to keep his eyes on the door and not turn around.

“Don’t you want to see your beautiful handiwork?”

“I’ve already seen it.”

“What’s the harm in seeing it again? It’s not like you regret it.” 

Akechi took a sharp breath as he felt a cold, damp finger trace down his back.

His eyes snapped open as he felt that telltale itch, climbing over Akira’s body in a hurry to try and get downstairs to be alone. He strangled a cry in his throat as his back started burning, hitting the floor with a loud thud. He tore his shirt off, curling in on himself, swearing under his breath. His scars felt like they were ripped open, his fingernails digging into his skin as he hugged himself. He could hear the bed creak.

“Goro?”

He dragged his nails up across his skin, leaving long scratches that started to bleed a little. He barely registered the blood, focused on the floor in front of him, trying not to scream in agony. He could hear Akira get closer to him.

“Goro, you’re-"

He grabbed his wrist and tried to pry it off his back. Akechi ripped his hand away, hissing in warning. He saw the blood caked under his nails. A tense few minutes passed before the pain subsided and he could breathe again. He let his other hand drop as he laid down on the floor, staring up into Akira's worried face. Akira knelt down, leaning forward, his hands hovering over him, hesitant. Akechi pushed himself up, pressing against his back against his chest. Akira held him, unsure what was going on. Akechi reached up, dragging his fingers along Akira's neck, making sure it wasn't the puppet him, relieved when he felt the burn mark instead of a tendril.

“You're really warm.” He muttered.

Akira sighed, placing his hands on Akechi's stomach. 

“Are you okay?”

“I didn't mean to wake you up.”

He could feel Akira rest his chin on his shoulder, pressing his weight into him.

“What happened?”

“Sometimes my scars start hurting again. It went away pretty quickly this time.”

Akechi turned around to look at him. Akira pulled him closer. Akechi wanted to pull away from him, but he suddenly felt tired. He would let Akira move him since it would be easier.

“Why didn't you tell me about this any other time it’s happened?”

“There's nothing you can do to help.”

“There has to be something if-"

Akechi pressed their lips together, stopping him.

“Akira, we've talked about this. It'll be okay.”

He could see that spark of stubborn defiance in Akira's eyes. Luckily, he dropped the subject, letting him press more against him. They sat in silence for some time, watching the sun creep into the room.

“About the whole old you thing…”

“It's the best option, Akira. I don't want you to get hurt.”

“Can you at least give us some time? Please?”

“I do have to get my suit from my apartment, and some makeup...hm.”

“Sojiro said you're not allowed to climb the fire escape anymore.”

“Is he going to stop me when I'm halfway up the building?”

“ _ Goro _ .”

“Yes?”

“Look, if I go get it for you, will that be okay?”

“Will you?”

“I promise. Just give us some time to find another solution.”

“You know, the last time you promised me something you went to the extreme. Maybe until the end of next month?”

“Are you asking me or telling me?”

“Telling. That should give you time, since your powers are gone.”

Akechi shifted, grabbing his bag and pulling it to them. He dug through for his medicine as Akira adjusted himself. 

“Hey, does your medicine affect you in other ways?”

“Hm?”

“You know, that one time in your old apartment?”

“You can just ask me if it affects my sex drive, Akira. Besides, lots of medicines do mess with people's sex drives, it's not really unique to me.”

“Well?”

“Nosy.” He smiled, putting the medicine back in his bag. “I've never had much of a sex drive anyway, I wouldn't really know the difference.”

“Could've fooled me.”

Akechi rolled his eyes at him as he stood up. He put his shirt back on, putting his hair up. Akira stood up as well, grabbing his hand before he went downstairs.

“Don't you need to text your friends the deadline?”

“They're your friends too.”

“I assumed the Phantom Thieves didn’t want me interfering.”

“You’re a Phantom Thief too, you know.”

Akechi gave him a hollow smile, patting the back of his hand. They both went downstairs to eat breakfast, Akechi hoping Akira would forget what happened this morning.   
  


The next day, Akechi found Morgana and Futaba were there when he went down to breakfast, taking one of the booths. Akira quickly grabbed the curry for the two of them and placed them on the table, sliding in. He patted the seat next to him. Akechi sat down, not looking at Akira. He poked at the curry in front of him, barely listening to whatever Akira was talking about with the other two. 

“-kechi?” 

He looks up, pushing the plate away from him. 

“Sorry, I didn’t catch that.” 

“You’ve been taking your medicine, right?” Mona asked.

He nodded.

“Okay, good. Nice to see you’re good now.”

Something about the way he said that unsettled him. He half paid attention to the conversation, seeing the others make their way inside. The Nijimas and Mishima weren't there, as expected.

“So, Akechi, what's our deadline?”

“Until the end of next month. That should be enough time. Especially without the Metaverse.”

“Yeah, that makes this complicated. Good to see you back, though.”

Akechi tilted his head as the group continue the discussion.

_ Why is what they said bothering me?  _

Then he realized. He stood up, walking in front of the stairs. He turned to face them.

“Something wrong?” 

Akira was halfway out of the booth before Akechi put a hand up, stopping him.

“Why is it so unbelievable to all of you that I haven't changed much?” 

He already knew the answer, but he wanted to hear them say it.

“Huh?”

“As eloquent as ever, Akira.” he sighed. “It feels like you're all just waiting for the day where I instantly become a better person.”

“What are you talking about?”

“It's...obvious none of you know how therapy works. I have made some progress, but not as much as you all seem to think. I am the same as I was in that suit and in that outfit as I am right now. I know I don't fit in with the rest of you.”

“But-"

“It was a truce. I wasn't-" He looked at all of them, seeing their confusion was as complete as his frustration. “This isn't the time to talk about this. I'll be upstairs if you need me. Good luck.”

He ignored Akira calling after him. He could hear them start talking again. He pulled out Joker, hugging the crow close as he sat down on the couch.

~~~~~~~

“Sheesh, what's gotten into him.” Ryuji mutters.

Akira was fully standing, contemplating going up after him. He decided against it, wanting to give him time to work out whatever his problem is. He sat back down.

“Okay, so, what can we do?” Ann started, leaning forward. “Akechi is right, we don't have the Metaverse to change her heart.”

“I mean, we have Futaba's hacking skills, right? Futaba?”

“And what? Just leave a calling card with no name and do nothing? That's not really gonna work.”

“Huh, why?”

“Well, this girl is not above stalking him. I doubt she would take it seriously if nothing else happened.” Yusuke leaned back, crossing his arms. 

“Well, do you two know what she looks like? Since Mishima isn't here right now.”

“I didn't see her, I was drawing.”

“I didn't get a good look at her, sorry.” Ryuji shrugged.

“Akechi is upstairs, I can go get him. He'd recognize her.” 

“We should let him calm down for a bit.”

Everyone was scratching their heads as they went over the details again. The Metaverse made things so much easier for them and it was just now that they were figuring that they took it for granted.

“Hold on.” Akira straightened up as something hit him. “Is Akechi still in prison?”

“...What are you talking about, he's literally right upstairs.”

“No, I mean, was there any articles on him being released?”

Futaba turned her laptop back around and started typing. It was several minutes before she said anything.

“There's a few not tabloids about him confessing. One about turning himself in and the resulting sentence. But nothing else I can see from first glance.”

“It was 6 years right?”

“Yeah, that's what it says. Oh wow, he covered up that eye really well.” 

Futaba turned her screen around to show them a picture of Akechi being escorted into a courtroom. It was as if Akechi had just stepped out of an interview on tv with how perfect he looked. 

“Perfect. We can use that to our advantage.”

Akira started explaining his idea, Futaba quickly picking up on what he was saying, supplying better ideas to the half of a plan he had.

“This might actually work if we can get ahold of a signed confession.” 

“We can ask Sae.”   
  


Morgana slipped upstairs as the discussion wound down, seeing how Akechi was doing. He came back down with Akechi in tow, who stopped on the bottom step.

“Oh, you're all still here.”

“Well, something seemed to be bothering you, Akechi-kun. We just wanted to make sure you're okay.”

He crossed his arms as he stepped down. He didn't come any closer to them though. 

“I appreciate that, but you guys can't, and probably wouldn't help with everything I'm going through.”

“What, do you think we wouldn't understand?”

“Partly. It will take years to get better, I want you all to know that. I haven't changed besides distancing myself from my old routine.”

“That's not true at all.”

Akechi sighs, closing his eyes. He sat down on the stairs.

“I'm not saying that to get reassurance. Refusing to acknowledge that truth doesn't make me better.”

“But you have gotten better. You're nicer now, and we're your friends, right?”

“...Now I just feel like you're purposefully not understanding what I'm saying.”

“So help us out, then. You're good at explaining this stuff, aren't you?”

“I can't make you understand, no matter how well I explain.”

“Try.”

“I am! I am trying!” Akechi stood up, fists clenched. “That's the whole point! You should know out of all of us that getting arrested isn't becoming a better person, Akira! I sat in prison for two years, it hasn't even been a year since I got out. Don't...don't do this to me.”

He started retreating back upstairs. Akira got up and started heading towards him.

“Akechi, wait. Can we please talk about this? I didn't mean to imply you weren't trying, I'm sorry. Please, we want to support you through this.”

Akechi turned around to face him.

“I'm tired, I'm done talking about this, because clearly I'm not getting it through any of your heads.”

Akechi disappeared upstairs again. Akira shot his friends an apologizing glance before heading up after him. Akechi was sitting on the couch, fiddling with the outfit on his crow. He refused to make eye contact as Akira sat down next to him.

“We do care about you, I want you to know that.”

Akechi smoothed out the clothes, leaning forward. Akira kissed his cheek before going back downstairs.    
  


Akira woke up alone. He saw Akechi’s bag was there, Joker still in the bed. Akira moved downstairs to see if Akechi was down there. Sojiro greeted him as Morgana stood up and stretched.

“Where's…?”

“He had to go to his appointment today. You slept pretty late.”

“You didn't go with him, Morgana?” 

“He said he didn't need me.”

Akira muttered to himself, but decided he would help Sojiro out today to pass the time.

~~~~~

Akechi saw Akira drop what he was doing and immediately come over to him after he stepped back inside Leblanc. He threw his hood back before Akira started squeezing him hard, causing him to tense. He awkwardly patted his back before Akira pulled away. Morgana simply stared at the two of them.

“Are you okay? Did anyone see you?”

“No one saw me. I know how to be careful.”

Akechi sat at the counter as Akira went back to washing the dishes. He was going through his phone, trying to log into his blog but the site seemed to be under maintenance.

“Hmm, weird.”

“What's wrong?”

“It's nothing.”

He went upstairs before Akira could ask him again. Before long, Akira was done for the day and came up to join him. As they settled down, he felt Morgana press up against his side.

“But seriously, are you okay?”

“Akira,” He rolled over to face him. “I will be alright. You don't need to ask all the time.”

“I do. I'm worried about you.”

“Yeah, well. You don't have to be.” 

Akechi rolled back around. He could feel Akira press against him, trying to comfort him. He patted one of his hands as he pulled Joker to his chest.   
  


The phone was somewhere beneath him, ringing. Akechi grumbled, feeling around for it and answering.

“Hello?”

“Oh, hi Sapph, dear. Is our Akira there?”

“Oh, hi Mrs. Kurusu. Uh,” Akechi sat up, seeing Akira was gone. “He left his phone here, but he's probably not that far away.”

“Well, would you tell him to call us? He might listen to you. We haven't been able to get a hold of him and he's not returning our calls.” 

Her tone barely hid her worry. Akechi swung his legs over the edge of the bed. He could feel jealousy coil in his chest.

“I will make sure he does.”

“Okay, thank you! And you sound sick, so I hope you get better dear. Goodbye.”

“Yeah, you're welcome, um, thank you. Goodbye.”

He wandered downstairs to see if Akira was helping Sojiro today. He saw Sojiro on his cellphone, annoyed. He hung up, turning around. Akechi held up Akira's phone, making Sojiro sigh.

“He forgot it?”

“Mhm. I'll assume his parents called you too.”

“Yeah, he hasn't called them yet this week. They’re upset.”

 

After talking to Sojiro for some time, he went back upstairs and sat down on the bed. Akechi pushed himself so he was leaning against the wall as he waited for Akira to make an appearance. Morgana jumped up on the table first, followed by Akira climbing the stairs.

“Oh, hey. Did you sleep well today?”

“Akira, what are you doing?”

“Huh? I'm trying to look after you.”

“Well, you forgot your phone so even if I did need you I wouldn't be able to reach you.”

He held it up, Akira rubbing the back of his neck.

“You're skipping class to look after me, aren't you?”

“Well, uh..”

“What the hell, Akira? First your mom calls and now you're skipping class?”

“It's not that big a deal!”

“Yes it is. I don't want you to baby me, Akira. I have recovered from worse by myself.”

“I just don't want you back in the hospital! What were you thinking back then?”

“In my defense, would  _ you _ let someone who just admitted to being a serial killer have a mysterious liquid on his person that he claims to be medicine?”

“No, but-"

“Exactly.”

“What's the matter with you?”

“All of you are just expecting me to be a good person now and I hate it. You're all acting as if you stole my heart or whatever, but we know that's impossible because persona users don't have Palaces. You're expecting way too much out of me and it's kind of unfair.”

He pushed himself to the edge of the bed and stood up.

“Because you have changed! I know you have, you tell me your nightmares and some other stuff. You've made friends with us.”

“I barely tell you anything, Akira. I barely trust any of you! I am just more comfortable because we all fought together and you all know about the Metaverse stuff.”

“What do you mean you barely trust us?”

“What do you  _ think _ it means, Akira? You're so clueless sometimes it drives me crazy.”

“It's all in the past. All of that stuff. You know that, right? You have changed and that's the truth.”

“No, no it isn't. You wanna know why? Because I don't regret even half the stuff I did! You aren't my therapist, so how would you know that I have changed at all? This is so much harder without  _ them _ and sometimes I  _ wish _ the Metaverse took me with it!”

“Don't say that.”

“So what  _ do  _ you want me to say? I thought you wanted the truth from me!”

“Uh, guys…” 

Morgana tried to cut in, being talked over and ignored.

“I do! But lately you haven't been honest with me at all!”

“I am being honest now, but you just don't want to hear it because you just want to think you've somehow fixed me!”

“Because you don't want to explain how you feel. You didn’t even want to tell me about the stalker stuff! Am I supposed to read your mind? How can I help if you won't tell me?”

“Because you can't help me all the time and you refuse to accept that!” Akechi crossed his arms across his chest. “Okay, how do I put this? Arsene was your first persona, right?”

“Well, yeah. I don't get what-"

“So Arsene is your true self, correct?”

“I mean I guess, but-"

“I am Loki. Loki is me. That's not changing anytime soon.”

Akira stared at him.

“Don't be ridiculous.”

“Two years of experience in the Metaverse on you. I learned so much without anyone's help. I am not a child.”

“Really? ‘Cause you're being childish right now! Just because Loki was your first doesn't mean he is you.”

“I art thou, thou art I. I don't know how the hell you can interpret that so badly, but here we are.”

“Just what has gotten into you?!”

“You,  _ for starters _ . Call your parents,” Akechi tossed him the phone, not hiding his jealousy anymore. “stop skipping class, stop trying to baby me. You have a family, people who worry about you! Just go and live your life instead of trying to take care of me! I can take care of myself!”

He turned his back on Akira. There was a long moment of silence.

“Oh. So  _ that's _ how it's going to  _ be _ .”

The voice was ice cold. Akechi's anger dropped as soon as he realized what he said. He turned back around to plead with him.

“Akira, wait.”

Akira was already partway down the stairs, slinging his bag over his shoulder. Akechi went after him. Akira glared at him as he started calling. He froze in place, immediately fearing the worst.

“Hello, mom?”

Akira walked out of Leblanc. Akechi slowly went back upstairs. He kicked his bag over, growling. Joker was still in Akira's costume, sitting on the bed. He took the pillow and knocked the crow over, burying the reminder of Akira under it as he laid face down on top of it. Morgana appeared next to him, putting a paw on his arm. Akechi let out a frustrated scream into the pillow.

“Are you okay?”

“He's impossible.”

~~~~~~

Mishima brought his laptop with him, sitting next to Akechi as he had his phone open. He saw Akechi tried to go on his blog again, getting the maintenance message again. Mishima ignored it while he set up what here was here to do.

“Still?” He murmured, closing the site.

“Hey, I'm ready.”

Akechi leaned in as Mishima pulled up the Phan-site. He logged out of his account, quickly typing in a new name.

“You spelled sapphire wrong.” 

“Well, you can change it later if you'd like. It's your account.”

“You’re making me an account?”

“Well, I thought some distance from the people harassing you would be nice for you. They don't know you're on here. And you still get to talk to your fans.”

Akechi was quiet as Mishima gave him a written copy of the name and password.

“You'll have to change the password later since this one is temporary. I'll assume you're familiar with online forums so…”

“You're all up to something on my blog, aren't you?” Akechi interrupted him, staring him down.

“Uh, haha, um, well…” Mishima sighed, giving up on an excuse. “Nothing gets past you, does it?”

“Well, yeah.”

He pulled up the site on his phone, carefully punching in the information.

“How long have you known Akira was a Phantom Thief?”

“After Kamoshida, I had my suspicions. New guy shows up, and then suddenly that asshole has a change of heart?”

“Interesting. Anything else I should know about my new account or?”

“Nothing you won't be able to figure out on your own. Just, y’know, be careful.”

“Okay, thanks.”

Mishima logged back in to his own account as Akechi commented on the most recent thread.

**SaffireAce: Hey, it's Sapph. The hiatus on my blog is still going, but I'm here now.**

**NowiJynx: oh thank god youre okay! You didnt respond and i got worried**

Mishima shut off his laptop for now, seeing Akechi picked it up quick. 

“Hey, so um...did you have similar powers as they did?”

Akechi glanced up at him.

“Yeah, I did. I'm not going to go into any details about it.”

“That's fine, I was just curious.”

Mishima stayed a little longer before saying his goodbyes, leaving Akechi alone.

~~~~~

“...I fucked up, didn't I?”

Akechi placed his face in his hands as Ann and Morgana watched. He just explained the fight he had to Ann, with the help of Morgana.

“Have you tried apologizing to him?”

“The first time I tried on the weekend his dad picked up and told me he was grounded for a couple weeks. But he's not picking up. I've left him a couple of voicemails. I know he's ignoring my texts.”

“Just give him some time to come around. But why did the fight start,I thought you two promised to work everything out?”

“I...he can be overbearing. Sometimes. Okay, maybe a lot of the time. And this whole thing is stressful.”

“Being stressed out is okay, but the way you handled it…”

“I know. I shouldn't have said that. I know I have a lot of problems with that sort of stuff. I shouldn't have lashed out on him. Or you guys, for that matter.”

“I mean, once I thought about it, you were right. We were acting like you had a change of heart instead of, ya know, you getting help for yourself.”

It was quiet when Sojiro came back from his cigarette break. 

“Hey, I know I've been teaching you coffee brewing, but why haven't you picked your hobby back up again? That seemed to help with the restlessness.”

“Oh, um…” Akechi sat up again. “All of my stuff is in my apartment and you said I couldn't climb the fire escape. I didn't think to ask Akira to grab it.”

“Hey, how about I get some stuff for you? What do you want?”

“If you’re serious, I can pay you for it.”

“How about you teach me some stuff in exchange instead?”

“Yeah, but I'm gonna ask you to pick up one other thing.”

Akechi gave Ann a list, and Morgana discussed it with her briefly.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, I'm sure. It won't fix anything with him, but…”

“We're on it!”

“Thank you.”

~~~~~~

“What were you thinking, Akira?”

Akira snapped his attention from the window to look at his father. They were on their way back to the house, his parents making him stay home overnight while he's grounded.

“Worrying your mother like that. Don't you care about us?”

“I do, I just...he doesn't have anyone and I wanted to comfort him.”

“Yes, but that's no excuse to not pick up when we call and skip your classes.”

“I'm sorry.” Akira mumbled for the millionth time in the past two weeks.

“We do love you, you know. Will you at least behave when your sister comes home tomorrow?”

“Yes.”

“Akira…”

“Yes,  _ sir. _ I promise.”

“She doesn't come home every day you know.”

It was silent the rest of the way home. Akira deleted his voicemail messages before handing his phone over to his mother. Dinner was tense, getting a judgmental stare from his mother as he excused himself, not eating much. He stared at the ceiling, not able to fall asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not gonna lie, it hurts a bit that they're fighting again, but that's just how it is sometimes.


	9. An Encore

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akira learns what happens if you ignore someone out of spite for too long. The Thieves start enacting their final plan after Futaba finds what they need. Akechi and Sae have a bit of a heart to heart after his therapy session.

Sojiro kept an eye on them as Akechi was showing Ann and Futaba his sewing techniques. He seemed relieved that Akechi was less fidgety than he had been lately. He had already cut out the fabric shapes he needed, but he had waited for those two to come so he could show them as he promised.

“Well, and then after this last stitch, you just...” 

As he talked, he pulled on the thread hard and they watched as the fabric came together. He held it out to show them the seam was invisible.

“Whoa. What did you just do?”

“It's a ladder stitch. It's also what surgeons use to close wounds.”

“So you could close up wounds?”

“Uh, technically, but I'm not really trained to do that. Or particularly want to.”

He pulled the fabric back to him, continuing his project. He was constantly interrupted by the girls and Morgana asking questions, which he was happy to answer.

“Where did you learn all of this?”

He pricked himself in the finger at the question, dropping his work. It wasn't bleeding, but it certainly stung.

“Touchy subject?”

“No, just caught me off guard.” He sighed. “I taught myself the basics while I was...moving around, because I needed to. The nicest foster mother I've ever had taught me the rest.”

Akechi made another stitch and then stopped. He put it back down, leaning back in the booth.

“You okay?”

“I wish I had the chance to thank her. For everything.”

He wipes away a tear from his eye, turning away from them. He picked up his sewing, shaking his head.

“Heh, sorry, caught up in old memories. Where did I leave off?”

“You know, I could help you find her, if you wanted.” 

Futaba stilled his hands, making Akechi look at her. He pulled his hands away, rubbing his wrist.

“No. I...don't think I could face her after... everything”

The group was quiet for a moment before Ann started a different conversation. He seemed to perk up a little again, talking with them, seeming to push the matter out of his mind.

~~~~~~~

This time, The Thieves gathered in Haru’s house for their meeting. Futaba sounded like she was really excited in her messages, so she must've found something good. 

“But why here and not at Leblanc?” Ryuji asked.

“Because of Akechi. I don't know what he might do if be found out what I dug up. Besides, it's not like he's going to be helping us with this.”

Futaba put her laptop on the coffee table, sitting right in the center of the couch. She waved everyone over to show them what she had found. She went over everything, explaining her plan.

“Whoa. I didn't know that was even a thing.”

“Yup. And there's no way this Tahara girl would be able to dispute it.”

Futaba was grinning. They all started discussing what the calling card was going to say. One last action as The Phantom Thieves. They had to make it count.

~~~~~~~

Akira laughed as his friends argued over what bad movie they wanted to watch. They were all drunk, worn out and celebrating that they were halfway through the school week. He knew his parents would come to pick him up later, and it was early enough in the day that he'd be mostly sober by the time he got home. Akira finished off the rest of his drink, sitting on the floor and practically melting into Fuki’s legs as she leaned forward to put her phone on the stack of everyone's phone. She paused, halfway out of the chair, as the stack started vibrating, the phones becoming less stable. They all stared at the stack before it stilled again. Fuki put her phone on the arm of the chair before going through the phones one by one.

“Kiiiraaa, I think it's yours.”

She laughed, grabbing it and reading who the call was from after she found it. 

“Itzz your boyfrien’...I think.”

Akira rolled his eyes, his mood darkening. Akechi had been trying to reach him, and he's starting to get on his nerves.

“He’ll leave a message, like alwaysh. Whatever.”

“That's jus’ ruuuude, Kira.”

“I'm still mad at him.”

“Hey, gimme. Can I play it for all of us? We can make a game out of it?” Jin leaned forward, trying to grab at it across the coffee table.

“Drink for every polite manner words and pauses he takes, yeah, play it. The code is 123 for the voicemail.”

“Wow, lame, dude.” 

Fuki tossed the phone to him, Jin catching it. Jin cranked the volume all the way up before dialing the voicemail as Akira got another drink, sitting back down. At the prompt, Jin punched in the code.

“You have one new message!” The phone chirped, before the tone chimed.

“Of course it's your stupid fucking voicemail again,”  

Everyone in the room froze, falling dead quiet as Akechi's voice kept going.

“ _ I'm Akira, I missed your call and I'm sorry, but I'll get back to you.” _

The tone was mocking before it went back to tired. 

“Yeah, right. Look, I get it, I made a mistake in saying all of that to you. But god  _ damn _ , you are the pettiest fucker I've ever met, and I knew several sleazy politicians.”

Akira stood up, not even caring that he knocked over his drink, reaching towards Jin to try and get it back. He stopped halfway as the message continued.

“You have been ignoring me, and I don't regret saying anything right now because I know you're going to delete this like the childish  _ brat  _ you are.” 

A loud sigh made Akira shiver. He's beared the brunt of Akechi's anger before, but this was overwhelming disappointment. He’s never heard Akechi disappointed before, much less it being directed at him. And it scared him.

“Maybe I made a mistake in jumping back into this too fast. You say how we can work anything out but I  _ really _ should've known better than to take your word for it. But this message has been longer than I planned it to be and I'd rather do this in person but you're making this hard enough already, so I'll just cut it short. We need to break up for now. I would say call me back when you can but we both know that you won't bother. I need to go. Goodbye.”

The call ended, everyone staring at Akira before the phone chirped again.

“End of message. To delete this message, press seven. To replay-" 

Jin canceled it, slowly offering the thing to Akira as if it would bite him otherwise. Akira snatched it out of his hands.

“What the fuck did you do?” Jin whispered.

“...I need some air.”

Akira escaped the dorm, attempting and failing to calm himself down. He wanted to call him back right away, turning his phone up so he could dial. He jumped as his phone rang, seeing it was his sister. He picked up, talking to her and assuring that he would be ready and waiting for her and his dad to pick him up. He headed back in to make sure he had what he needed for the weekend.

~~~~~~~

Tahara was staring at her suspect’s blog, squinting at the latest post made a few weeks ago, rereading it.

**Hiatus**

**Hello everyone, apologies for going radio silent on my end. I hate to disappoint you all, but given recent events, I can’t guarantee I’ll be able to update this blog anymore. It’s been fun, but I have to take time to sort all of this out now. It’s been too stressful to continue my hobby, so for now, goodbye. Hopefully this blows over soon.**

**Sincerely,**

**Sapph**

Yet now, she sees little edges of black and red in different areas of the blog. Clicking them does nothing. She’s confused because Sapph posted his notice at least three weeks ago. She opened her own blog, deciding to try and respond to more comments today from her new fanbase. A ding signaled she got a direct message, and looking at the name, she didn't recognize it.

**Alibaba: Be Prepared.**

She tried to send a message back to tell them to knock it off and that she wasn't scared, but was met with an error. 

_ User not found? _

She tried three more times, being met with the same error. She clicked on the name but was sent to a 404 page.

_ What the hell? _

Tahara took a screenshot and sent it to Eiko. Something was up, but she couldn't place her finger on what. Maybe the two of them could figure it out.

~~~~~~

_ Hm, wonder why Akechi wants to meet here. _

Sae locked her car, joining Akechi and his therapist. He waved at her, the frown quickly returning on his face. Behind him, the beach was empty and dreary, the clouds threatening to pour on them.

“Alright, Goro, pick a spot.”

Akechi turned to look, making his way to the pier after a few moments. The therapist turned to Sae, nodding.

“Glad you came.”

“Likewise.”

They followed after him, noticing he was hesitating where the stone of the sidewalk met the wood planks of the pier. He suddenly started sprinting down it, the two of them running after him.

“Goro, wait!” Sae shouted.

He skidded to a stop, leaning over the edge, silently contemplating the freezing waters below. Sae could see the rocks at the bottom once she got close enough, becoming almost instantly concerned. She watched him slowly sit down on the edge, swinging his legs a little. His therapist sat on a pillar nearby, watching him carefully. 

“So, what's going on lately, Goro?” 

“Well… a lot. You know about the stalking thing already. Uh…” 

Sae watched as he leaned even further forward, suppressing the gut reaction to grab his hood to keep him from falling in.

“I'm not doing well. I'm not making any progress, I...broke up with my boyfriend.”

“How did that go over with him?”

“I don't know, he hasn’t called back yet. I had to leave a voicemail, but he's been ignoring me and probably had just been deleting my other voicemails. He's made sure I know he's ignoring me.”

Akechi took in a deep breath. It was quiet for a moment before he suddenly started crying.

“Oh, I can't do this anymore. I lashed out at him over something stupid and he hates me for it, I lashed out at my so-called friends, I can't explain my side of things well. I'm never going to get to be a normal person! I still quit when I don't get certain things right on the first try, they're expecting so much of me and I can't handle it because I don't want to disappoint anyone but the standard is impossible for me. My best idea was to just give up and become who I was again and just...I dunno, die a painful death at the hands of people who hate me for killing Shido. But fuck him, he's a horrible man, I hope he's rotting in hell. Every time I think I have any sort of control over my life it gets taken away. I wish… I don't want to die, just… I just don't want to exist anymore. It would be easier that way.”

Sae opened her mouth to say something, but remembered she agreed to just observe, just in case he did jump in the water.

“What was it that you lashed out at him over?”

“I… I got… I was jealous of his parents. He has people that worry about him… a family. I… I don't deserve to call his friends my friends.”

“Are they not your friends? Last time we talked, it seemed like they consider you their friend.”

Akechi bit his lip, leaning back. Sae was reminded of the shy fifteen year old that first started, a kid thrown into the working world with almost no guidance. She remembered how young Akechi actually was in that moment.

“Well. Uh… I don't really get them, I suppose? I haven't been that great to them lately. I don't get a lot of things, I guess.”

“And why not?”

“I just feel… stuck. Like I'm not getting anywhere. And they… they're good people. Just, so forgiving and I… don't get why? If I found out someone was personally responsible for killing my mother I'd hate them forever, maybe I'd even try to-!”

Akechi cut himself short with a huff and laid back with a thud, staring straight up. Tears still lingered on his face.

“I really haven't changed, have I? I still find it hard to forgive people. It's what kept me going for so long and now…”

He sat up again, the hood falling off as he wiped his eyes. He stared into the horizon, deep in thought.

“I never planned on making it this far. I accepted that I wasn't going to see my eighteenth Christmas and now… I… I'm almost 22 now. It's hard to believe sometimes.”

“You know, you don't owe forgiveness to anyone.”

“Huh?”

“You're allowed to be angry at the way the world has treated you in the past. At the people who hurt you personally. It's okay to be angry about that stuff.”

“I can?”

“Yes. Forgiveness is nice, but it's optional, especially if they haven’t changed their behavior at all.”

Akechi looked up, smiling.

“And here I was, convinced I was never going to get better until I forgave everything.”

The smile dropped as he put his hands in the hoodie pocket.

“I feel bad that I broke up with Akira over the phone like that, though. I wish it didn't have to be that way, but I'm not sure if I just… like the idea of being with him over being with him.”

“How so?”

“I may have lashed out at him wrongly, but he's being childish. I want to talk to him about it, but I feel he's never confided in me for anything that was bothering him. It's always been about me, and I'm the one being as open as I can be all the time and he's…” 

Akechi gestures vaguely, hugging his knees to his chest.

“A wall. He just hears what he wants to hear. I barely know anything about him, and I'm the one expected to be open about all of this all the time. It… He  _ knows _ I hate being deliberately ignored,but now he’s mad at me so he does it. Ha… Maybe my former foster father was right, maybe I really  _ am _ hard to love.”

“Well, you did all you could to make it up to him, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Then it's on him. I know it's heartbreaking, but if it's making you feel that way it's for the best to end it. It sounds like it was starting to get unhealthy.”

Akechi sniffled, burying his face. Sae patted his shoulder before she could stop herself, feeling him freeze beneath her. She stopped, stunned. She started to pull the hand away but Akechi closed a hand around her wrist, keeping her there. His therapist took the silence to write down some notes on her clipboard.

“Do you want to keep talking?”

“No, I'm tired.”

“Okay, we can continue this next time. Ready to leave?”

“Actually, I want to walk on the sand for a bit.”

Sae watched as Akechi pushed himself back and untied his shoes, taking them off. He was down to bare feet as the three of them walked down to the beach. They followed Akechi down to the shoreline, watching as he stood mesmerized by the waves. He inched away from the water as it got too close to him, shaking slightly. He grabbed a shell and threw it as hard as he could into the water, watching it splash and sink beneath the waves.

“Okay, I'm ready to go now.”

He turned around, leading the way back to the sidewalk they started from. He sat down and put on his shoes again.

“Hey, how about I drive you back?”

“Sure.”

They said their goodbyes, parting quietly. Akechi put the hood back up before getting into Sae’s car, silent as she started the car and drove.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

Akechi leaned his head against the window after a few minutes. The radio was on low, talking about local news and upcoming events.

"I don't mean to pry, and you don't have to answer this but… What makes you think you haven't changed?"

He glanced at Sae, looking back out the window. 

"Well..."

It was slow, drawn out, as he tried to find words. 

"I don't really trust the others...the thieves...but they see me as a friend. I barely tell Akira anything at all, but since he won't talk to me right now that's moot. I feel stuck, I guess."

Sae hummed, thinking about it. 

"I know Akira is still worried about you." 

"Is he, or are you just saying that to make me feel better?"

"Well, why do you think he's still mad at you?" 

"I... repeated something that broke his heart the first time." 

"Why did you say it?" 

"I wasn't really thinking. I know they worry about me, I know they care, but I just feel so much older than them at the same time. That’s silly to say out loud, really, but I just am older in a way. Akira can also be a bit clingy, and I don't know how to deal with it? I don't know, I don't know anything."

Sae glanced at him at the next red light.

“I suppose you would feel like you’re much older, considering.”

“Yeah, what the hell was I doing? I was fifteen. Fifteen and had an adult job, being some sort of wannabe detective. But why did you go out of your way to talk to me? You could’ve just ignored me like everyone else did.”

“Hmmm. Well, I guess in a way, you reminded me of myself.”

Akechi stared at her, confused.

“I had Makoto to take care of so suddenly when my father passed away. I felt like I had to step up and do that, that I had to be a responsible parent and good at my job. You were Makoto’s age, and at first I was rather surprised you even got the job. You and Makoto were very similar, so I guess I just wanted to help you too. You got a lot better at hiding it, but I just had a hunch that something was off based on some of the things you did and said. Because you didn’t seem to have anyone looking out for you.”

“I almost did.”

He nearly choked on the words, leaning back against the window. It was quiet the rest of the way back to the cafe.

"Hey, if you want to grab lunch with me sometime, you can just ask, okay?"

"Um, okay. I'll keep that in mind."

She waited until he got inside before she drove off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, after being distracted and trying to figure out how to word things to get the right feeling and emotion, this is the result. The plan is the next chapter should wrap up everything, but we'll see like always.


	10. Truce

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akira gets a wake up call from his sister. Tahara gets a calling card from the Phantom Thieves. Akechi is oh-so patiently playing the waiting game.

Akira held his face in one hand, elbow on the table, quietly pushing around his food. He didn't eat much, just a piece of broccoli and a bite of chicken, but his family didn't seem to notice until now.

“Akira, it's rude to have your elbow on the table.” His mother scolded, passing a bowl to his sister. “And will you eat something, please?”

He held back a sigh as he dropped his hand into his lap, straightening up. He ate a little more food as they went back to their conversation.

“Can I please be excused?”

His parents exchanged glances before his father waved his hand.

“Yes, go. Put the plate away before you leave.”

Akira cleaned the plate off and put it in the sink before he left for his room. He shut his door, collapsing on his bed. His phone was on the nightstand next to him, but it seemed too heavy to hold right now.

_Break up? He wants to break up?_

He thought about the past few weeks, how he handled the fight. He realized it did not go well, that Akechi was trying to talk to him about it.

_For now. He wants to for now. So that means a break, right?_

There was a knock at the door.

“Hey, you alright?”

“No.”

“Can I come in?”

Akira sighed, rolling over onto his back.

“Sure.”

His sister entered, closing the door behind her. She sat down on the edge, hands folded in her lap. She didn't look at him, because he never liked saying things face to face that was bothering him.

“Usually you're a lot more excited to see me when I visit. What's up?”

“I think my boyfriend just broke up with me.”

“You think?”

“Well, he said he wants to break up for now. Maybe he will want to get back together soon?”

“Depends. What happened?”

Akira closed his eyes and took a deep breath before recounting the fight back to her. She only asked the occasional question to clarify.

“And now I guess that's up in the air.”

“Have you called him back yet?”

“I was going to earlier but you called me. Should I?”

“Akira, it sounds like he wants to work this out with you, despite what you did.”

“What? But I-”

He sat up, being shushed by her hand. She frowned, holding his gaze.

“You were smothering him.”

Akira stared back at her.

“Look, Kiri, if you water a plant constantly it dies. And I have a good friend in Hong Kong that's starting to go through something similar. I know I can't help her with everything, all the time, because then she won't learn how to cope on her own. People need room to grow, Kiri. He sounds like he's doing his best to change, despite the pressure and expectation you were putting on him to do that quickly. You were being overbearing. That's what he was trying to tell you, and you didn't listen. And then, when he tries to reach out to you to make up you go and ignore him? What the hell is wrong with you?”

Akira bit his lip, curling up into a ball. He grabs his phone, dialing in his number. He looks up at her and she nods. He calls, putting the phone to his ear. He hears it pick up, and then a button or two being pressed on the other end.

“Hey, Sapph?”

“What do you want, Kurusu?”

Akira had to admit that stung a little.

“Can we talk about this?”

A loud sigh, followed by some muttering he couldn't quite catch.

“Akechi…” Morgana prodded on the other end.

“I'm assuming you actually listened to your voicemail for once.”

“Yeah, I did. I'm sorry.”

“Oh, _are_ you, now?”

“I...am.”

Akira looked at his sister, looking for anything. She motioned for him to keep going.

“Look, can… is there a way for us to meet in person? I want to talk about this before we break up for good.”

It was quiet on the other end for the longest minute Akira has ever waited.

“Is Saturday good? If we meet on the beach up here?”

“I can do that. Any time in particular?”

“Try for some time around 1pm, okay?”

“Yeah, sounds good. See you then.”

“Sure. Believe it when I see it.”

Akechi hung up, leaving Akira no time to respond to that remark.

“Well?”

“He wants to meet me on the beach up there. On Saturday. But, uh, you know how Mom and Dad are…”

“Leave that to me. Even better, I'll drive. I do want to meet the boy that stole my little brother's heart.”

“You're so embarrassing.”

“That's my job. Now come on, let's go.”

She marched him downstairs to where their parents were sitting and talking. Akira had to bring the subject up carefully to the parents.

“Akira, not this nonsense again.” Their mother frowned, looking up at their father.

“Don't worry, I'll be chaperoning him. Besides, I haven't seen Sojiro in forever. Please?”

“Well, you _are_ the responsible one…” Their father mumbled, having a silent conversation with their mother.

“Fine. But you make sure you call us when you get there. And while you're on your way home.”

They thanked them profusely before retiring for the night to their own rooms. Akira had another sleepless night, though this time on what to say when he sees Akechi again.

~~~~~~

Tahara was staring at her blog, stunned.

**Tahara Akiko, your awful behavior has gone unpunished for long enough. For the crime of stalking and putting an innocent life in danger, we will steal your prideful desire to be right. Your days as a wannabe detective are over.**

**Signed,**

**The Phantom Thieves**

Tahara couldn’t get rid of it, couldn’t control or edit her blog anymore.

**Alibaba: i see you trying to take your blog back**

**Alibaba: its useless fyi**

She got a sudden flood of messages  with article links, private documents, and some other things that she immediately knew wasn’t public information.

**what is all this??**

_Oh, now I can send messages._

**Alibaba: the truth you so desperately wanted**

Tahara blinked, scrolling back up to the first link and clicking through.

_Akechi Goro… Arrested?!_

She stared at the picture of beautiful, perfect Akechi being led into a courtroom. She looked at the date of the article.

_December 28th. Four years ago._

She read through it, the article mentioning some sort of bizarre confession after having disappeared for weeks. She clicked through to the next article, this one about the proceedings being kept quiet while the trial was still going on. The next article was about how his confession caused chaos in both the Diet Building and Tokyo’s Police Department, with how much dirt he had brought to the surface, confirming the things in Shido’s confession. Tahara dug through the links Alibaba sent her, finding Shido’s confession and going through it. She spent time comparing each and every article, finding that everything matched.

_But this couldn’t be my perfect Akechi. There’s no way. I refuse. This is all lies. This “Alibaba” is trying to trick me. This is a horrible, horrible prank._

There was one link left. She hovered over it, apprehensive, refusing to let go of her denial about her crush.

_But if this is the truth, then a good detective would follow it, no matter how much it hurts._

Still, she hesitated. She closed her eyes and clicked on it. Cautious, she opened an eye to find what looked to be a video. The picture was a sketch of the courtroom, what was clearly Akechi in the stand, the judge above him and an older woman standing over him. Tahara took a moment to dig through her drawers and the junk on her desk to find her earphones, plugging them in. She adjusted the volume just right, staring down the play button.

_Well, here goes nothing._

She hit play. She stilled her breathing as she heard, clearly and loudly, Akechi, talking and detailing some of his real intentions. Of why he had been a detective so young, how he solved the cases that he himself caused. It would be unbelievable, if she wasn’t also staring down the written confession in another tab, clearly signed by him. In fact, she unpinned the autograph she had, bringing it to the signature at the bottom, comparing the two and finding they were a perfect match.

_It’s real. It’s him. It’s real. Is this really happening? Has this really happened??_

Every moment it went on, she got more and more unnerved with Akechi’s voice so pleasantly answering the lawyer and judge’s questions, how he was describing the murders he committed as if he was just casually talking about the weather. Every second was agonizing. Everything she knew- no. Everything she _thought_ she knew about Akechi Goro, the Second Coming of the Detective Prince, gorgeous man, was all a lie. A coverup. For the real him, the monster that was sitting in that courtroom four years ago, describing every crime he’s ever committed, every dirty deed that he has done since he was fifteen. _Fifteen._ Fifteen and the man was already a killer then. She tabbed back to see the video was almost done.

“So, that begs the question of how were you going to ruin Mr. Shido’s political career?”

“Oh, simple enough. I was waiting until he was going to be elected Prime Minister, and the night of the results, I would reveal I am his bastard child.”

_Wait, what??_

Tahara heard several gasps in the recording, no doubt the reporters and jury members in the room. The judge had to get their silence before moving on to the next question.

“So why murder him then? What changed?”

“I found out he was going to have me killed after the election. It’s not really self-defense because I murdered him long before he was going to, but I was protecting myself in the end. Same result, different method.”

“And what about these… _Phantom Thieves_ … you mentioned earlier?”

“Well, Your Honor, they may have been incredible people with extraordinary powers, but even they can’t stop a bullet.”

Tahara felt a chill run down her spine. She could hear the anger, the bitterness in his voice as he said that. A few of her tears had pooled onto her desk, the autograph long since released and resting on her floor.

“Akechi Goro, are you absolutely certain you plead guilty to all of this?”

“I do, Your Honor.”

“Very well, I sentence you to six years of prison. Court adjourned.”

_Wait, six years?_

Tahara checked the year of the first article again. She spent the next few hours digging around to see if he had been released early. No such luck. Just a tabloid about something weird with black gunk happening to him while in jail, but she dismissed it as just pure slander like the rest of it.

_He’s… still in prison…_

Tahara leaned back, wiping the last of her tears away. She took the time, though her hand wasn’t steady, to copy all the links into her ongoing document. She shut her laptop with a loud click, not being able to bear looking at all of that anymore.

Dinner with her family was okay, there was only one ridiculous argument this time around. She went to bed early, staring up at the ceiling.

_Akechi Goro is in prison. For being a serial killer._

~~~~~

Akira could see him standing near the water, throwing rocks into the ocean, his back turned to them. He felt his sister nudge his back, pushing him forward. He shot her a dirty look.

“Don't look at me in that tone of voice. You're the one trying to get him back.”

Akira turned back, taking a deep breath. He walked slowly, standing next to him as he threw another rock with a loud plop.

“So, you actually showed up.”

Another rock into the water. Akira shoved his hands into his pockets and hung his head.

“I'm sorry.”

Akechi didn’t look at him, just concentrated on throwing.

“That was stupid of me. I get it. I… am petty, childish even. I do want to make this work. I want this relationship to work.”

“Well, get used to disappointment. I already have.”

His tone was bitter, full of regret. Akira studied his face, but he didn't seem angry.

“Then why bother meeting me here then? You could've just left it at that voicemail and never picked up again.”

“Because I want to talk about it, like two adults. Not yelling at each other, no silent treatment, no insults. Just talking.”

He picked up a shell, weighing it in his hand before tossing it. It didn't quite make it to the water, bouncing across the sand.

“And if we need to break up, we break up. If you're going to do one last thing for me, just let this be a clean one.”

Akira looked at the waves for some time, pushing the toe of his shoe into the sand. He kicked up some of it, thinking about the two of them. Going through the past, both recent and distant.

“Goro, I'm still not sure exactly where we went wrong, to be honest.”

“Where do I start, Akira?”

Akira winced.

“I don't know how to make you understand anything you don't want to. I don't know how to explain I struggle being empathetic and trusting and you expecting me to be those things and being open is, well, exhausting. I can't be open about every awful thing that's ever happened to me when I barely know anything about you.”

Akechi stopped mid throw, staring into space. He dropped the rock, sitting down onto the sand with a sigh.

“It's like I'm talking to a brick wall sometimes. I just… it makes me feel like I'm hard to love.”

He held up a hand to stop a protest.

“I know that's not true. I know you care. I know. But I can't… people don't change that fast on their own, okay? You seem to think because I’ve been doing a few good things that it just erases every bad thing I’ve ever done. It makes me feel like a failure because I’m not keeping up with your expectations of me. Being emotional and open and trusting even some of the time is hard for me. I just need you to understand that.”

Akira swallowed hard. Akechi hunched forward, hands in the hoodie pocket, not looking at him at all.

“It feels like all of this was built on that one night stand with you, we built the foundation on a mess of emotions and tried to keep going. We get so far and then we have misunderstandings that turn into a fight. And then I’m the one trying to fix it so you don’t have to, because I feel guilty if I don’t. I'm tired of playing this game with you.”

Akira slowly sat down, digging his fingers into the sand behind him.

“I've been a real asshole to you lately, huh?”

He saw Akechi stiffen.

“The first time, it was because I was being selfish and pushy with you. I didn't want to think because I knew you felt the same way years ago, when I should've been thinking about how you would feel about it. This time, was… what, jealousy? You were jealous, but also worried about stuff I stopped caring about because I wanted to take care of you. When you're older than me, and you knew better than I did how to take care of yourself. I was just so caught up in worrying about you that I couldn't see how you felt about being… belittled. I was treating you like a child and not, well, you. I couldn’t understand the stress you were having just trying to live a normal life. And then I went and took out my frustration on you when I should have been listening to you. Because you knew you better. You know yourself better and I just pretend I know everything.”

Akira took another deep breath.

“And that was awful of me. And arrogant. I'm dumb enough that my sister had to point that stuff out to me. That I was smothering you in the end. You’re not a failure, because I’m the one putting those unfair expectations on you. I was so caught up in the thought that you changed for good that we were together, that we could be together, that I didn't bother to be open with you at all, to even try to see and understand who you were.”

He shifted forward, turning to look at Akechi's face as he continued.

“In your own terms, I didn't want to accept that you were Loki. I wanted you to be Robin Hood so badly that I convinced myself Loki didn't exist. Which was shitty of me, honestly.”

It was silent for a long time. They watched as the waves got closer to their feet, just going over everything that's been said.

“Can we start over, even if it’s just as friends? Or is it too late?” Akira asked.

Akechi sighed, side-eyeing him hard.

“I’m not sure. But the distance would certainly help. Maybe when I go back to my routine once this whole stalker thing blows over. If it does, I should say.”

“Do you doubt them?”

“No Metaverse is a hard limitation they have to work around. I don’t really see it happening, really.”

“Ah, there’s the pessimism we know and love.” Akira was sarcastic, leaning back more.

“Better get used to it, sunshine.” Akechi shot back.

Akira couldn’t help but smile at that. He glanced back at his sister, waiting on the boardwalk, playing with her phone. He dropped the smile as he realized the crossroads before them, one path, where they could be a couple again at some point, and the other path, they never see each other again.

“But, seriously… is it too late to start this over?”

“How about I tell you the one thing I never wanted to tell you, and then you decide if we can start over as friends?” Akechi offered, pulling his legs under him to sit criss cross.

They locked eyes for a moment before Akechi tore away to look at the ocean.

“Shoot.”

“I only realized I had a crush on you after I pulled the trigger.”

Akira gaped at him.

“What? What?!”

“Well, to be fair, I wouldn't have known if Robin Hood hadn't pointed it out to me.”

“But the engine room?”

“Denial. I couldn't take back the bullet. And I thought you would hate me forever, considering…”

Akechi curled up as much as he could. More silence as that last statement sunk in. Akira weighed all of his options before making a decision.

_I can't afford to fuck this up again._

“Hey.”

Akechi looked over at him. Akira held out a hand.

“I want to start over with you. Truce?”

Akechi snorted.

“Yeah, truce.”

He grabbed his hand, and shook on it. Akira stood up, pulling Akechi with him.

“Come on, you gotta meet my sister. We'll drive you back to Leblanc.”

The ride back was full of chatter as Akira's sister started grilling Akechi on details of his relationship with her Kiri.

“Kiri, huh? Maybe I should start using that.”

“Hey, don't you dare.”

“Sapph, you're free to use it, don't listen to him, he's a baby, he doesn't know better.”

“Yeah, and you're an old crone.”

 

Akira let his sister go into Leblanc first.

“Sojiro, it's been ages!”

“Whoa, haven't seen you in forever, kid. How's Hong Kong treating you?”

Akira and Akechi slipped upstairs as the adults started talking. Soon enough, Akira had his head in Akechi's lap, legs to either side of him as Akechi ran his fingers through his hair.

“Honestly, I was surprised you were even jealous of my parents.”

“Why wouldn't I be?”

“Well, my sister is sixteen years older than me, and she's their favorite. They practically started over when they had me.”

Akira talked for an hour about the whole situation with his parents, with emphasis on them going through his phone constantly.

“...and then they didn't believe me after I got arrested when I said I didn't do anything wrong. They just stopped trusting me immediately, and next thing I know they're sending me to dad's old college buddy or whatever.”

“Sojiro?”

“Mhm. And when I came back, it's like I never left, they didn't even want me to leave for college at first. It took me three years of convincing them to let me stay here this past summer.”

“Sheesh, I’ve had a few of those. They sound controlling.”

“They are. Because I'm not their favorite, and I'm the baby of the family. They don't even get the whole bisexual thing. Like they say don't worry, we'll support you no matter who you choose to be with, but the way they ask me about my love life makes me feel they really want me to be, y’know, normal or whatever. They pretended I was straight with both of my ex-girlfriends and they pretended I was gay with my other ex-boyfriend, but they were just so condescending about it. Like they think it's code for being straight but _experimenting_ or whatever. And now that I'm dating you, er, when I was dating you I mean, it feels like they're waiting until I like, pick a side or whatever.”

“Well, obviously, what you have to do is date both a girl and a boy at the same time so they know. Do you think Makoto and Ryuji would go for it? They both seem to be your type.”

Akira snorts at Akechi's joke.

“You're awful at relationship advice.”

“Only the worst for you.”

He twirls some of Akira's hair in his fingers, looking up at the ceiling.

“I still wish I had a family.”

Akechi sighs. Akira shifts up so he can press more of his body into him. He turns, putting his head on Akechi's shoulder.

“Hey, no one yells at you for simple mistakes or impulsive decisions.”

“Sometimes you really are doing dumb things just because? Who would've guessed?”

“Akira, we gotta get going!” His sister yells from downstairs.

“Damn it.” Akira grumbles, pulling away. “I'll be right down!”

Akechi cups his face, rubbing his thumbs over his cheeks. Akira smiles, leaning in for a moment before sighing and breaking away from him. This whole thing was still new, being friends and not boyfriends would take time to get used to. And he wanted to do better this time around, to not screw it up. He gets part way down the stairs, before Akechi stops him.

“Wait, before you go.”

Akira turns, watching him get a box off the shelf. He hands it to him, looking slightly embarrassed.

“I know it won't fix anything, but I feel bad I never got you anything for Christmas and now it's February, but…”

Akira steps back upstairs, carefully undoing the ribbon on the box. He opens it, pulling out what's inside. It was a stuffed siamese cat, dressed in Akechi's black outfit.

“You…?”

“It's who I was. The real me. And, well…”

Akira follows his gaze to where Joker sat, in his thief outfit.

“What about the white one?”

“Hm?”

“Knowing you, you would've made the white outfit too, right? May I have it?”

“Why? That wasn't me at all.”

“It was when you were one of the Phantom Thieves.”

Akechi stared at him, before sighing and giving up. He pulled it out of his bag and handed it to him, neatly folded.

“You're ridiculous, you know that? But, uh, are you gonna name the cat?”

“He’ll be Crow. To go with your Joker.”

Akira grinned as Akechi rolled his eyes.

“Ah, some revenge of your own, I see.”

“Kiri, come on!”

“Okay!”

“Bye. Hope to see you this summer?”

“Hopefully. I'll let you know. Bye.”

Akira dropped the outfit and the cat into the box. He ran down the stairs, nearly knocking over his sister. The car ride back was peaceful.

“So, what’s the verdict?” She asked.

“We’re going to be friends for now. And once we’re better friends, we might get back together.”

“Well, that’s good. Glad to see it ended nicely.”

He was dozing off when he was woken up by his sister’s voice.

“Kiri?”

“Mm?”

“I’m proud of you.”

Akira grinned, falling asleep a few moments later.

~~~~~~

Tahara stared down her blog, putting the final touches on a new post. She had asked Alibaba if she was allowed to share all of that stuff and they said she was. Encouraged her to, even.

_But now what, if I’m not taking care of this blog? When all of this eventually dies down?_

She didn’t know. She would just have to figure it out when she gets there. Still, she would miss it. It’s been her blog for the past seven years. She gained a following, made some new friends, and been one of the main curators of anything relating to Akechi Goro. It was her pride and joy, her little place of happiness in the world. And this post, her revelation, her discovery would ruin everything.

_But this is the end of this case. I found the truth. What happened to him. And the people need to know._

Tahara looked over it once more, the pointer hovering over the post button. She bit her lip.

_Once I do this, there’s no going back. For him, or for this blog. This will change everything forever. For good or for worse._

She clicked post, immediately shutting her laptop. She couldn’t bear to watch. Even if she had come to terms with its ugliness, the truth was hard to look at for very long.

~~~~~~

Akechi had been spending a lot more time than he thought he ever would on the Phan-site, talking to people and answering some questions. He was mentioned in many threads, but this one had his attention for the past few days.

**Thread: joker appreciation thread!**

**KK1Go: i love this little bird. Hes such a good model, sapph ^-^. Anyways, I still love this outfit the best [wildacesewing.blogon.com/royalthief] its so cute with the little spiky shoulder things! love those**

**NowiJynx: my fave was always [wildacesewing.blogon.com/punkthief]**

**MiauMeow: ugh dont make me chooooose >.< my lil sis’s fave is [wildacesewing.blogon.com/ladythief], all that red leathery material is stunning. @sapph what material was that, also my sis wants her cow to be best friends with your bird**

Akechi grinned, genuinely touched. Though he was having one of those days where he couldn’t get out of bed for very long, he decided to join in.

**SaffireAce: Truth be told that tail was a pain on that outfit. But it’s a red faux suede leather, the shiny kind. Also, Joker would love to be best friends with your sister’s cow.**

**MiauMeow: oh shit i forgot you were on here lmao. But wow thanks, didnt think youd anser that seriously. Sounds like u got a pretty good machine to do all of that**

**SaffireAce: I don’t actually. I sew it all by hand.**

**MiauMeow: ???????????? are u fucking w us?**

**NowiJynx: dude what?? Doesnt that hurt after a while???**

**SaffireAce: I don’t like the machines as much. Also I can’t really afford a good one right now, even if I wanted one.**

He watched Morgana pad up into the room. He sat up, the blanket falling down into his lap.

“Hey Mona.”

“Hey. Is something wrong?”

Morgana jumped onto the bed, sitting on the edge. Akechi rolled his shoulders back and hummed in thought.

“Not a lot of energy today. Is Sojiro worried about me?”

“Well, yeah. But he said you and Akira came back together for a little while. How did that go?”

Akechi sighed. He knew this question was coming.

“We decided that for now, we would just be friends. We realized we need to become better friends with each other before we have any chance at making a romantic relationship work.”

“Glad that didn’t end badly. But how are you feeling about it?”

“Never better. I’m glad this wasn’t a messy and awful breakup. And the distance will help, since Akira will be busy away at college while my life… hopefully gets back on track.”

Akechi frowns.

“Were the Phantom Thieves successful?”

“Can’t say. Only time will tell.”

“Greaat.”

Akechi leans back against the wall, annoyed. He wasn’t sure what he expected.

“Hey, did you give him the gift?”

“I did. I think he liked it.”

He scratched Morgana behind the ears. He decided to at least walk downstairs and let Sojiro know he was okay for the time being.  


The next day, he opened the Phan-site forums to read during a break in the cafe, when he saw a thread he was in updated. He opened it, reading the new message.

**NowiJynx: Hey Sapph, look! [princegorofansite.blogon.com/The_Case]**

He clicked on it, dreading how it could possibly be worse.

**Hello everyone,**

**Well, I must say that this has been a very intense and enlightening case, to say the least. What with the calling card recently and all of the commotion and attention my silly little case has gotten, it certainly was exciting.**

**But now I’m not sure how to phrase this delicately. I will do my best while still presenting the facts. That blogger I mentioned before, who I had believed was Akechi Goro, is not in fact, Akechi. And here’s how I know.**

**The Phantom Thieves sent that calling card, and have brought me a wealth of evidence, which… well…**

**It’s… not pretty. But I’ve come to realize the truth never really is. And I have to share all of it with you, because otherwise I would be a failure as a detective if I did not share my findings. So, here. I’m going to lay it all out for you.**

**[article_AkechisArrest]**

**[article_TrialProceedings]**

**[article_ConfessionPanic]**

**[confession3421_AkechiGoro]**

**[confession3419_ShidoMasayoshi]**

**Which, granted, I had thought at first that all of this wasn’t real, even though his signature matches the one I have. I thought they were just pulling some sort of elaborate and cruel prank on me. But this last link confirmed it was him. Be forewarned, it’s a bit unsettling to hear, so listen at your own risk.**

**[video_case3421]**

**You know, I spent the past seven years obsessing over him. Or at least, the person we all thought we knew. And the truth is ugly and harsh and bitter. But now you can share the burden of the truth with me, should you choose to accept it. He’s still in prison for the next two years. I know that’s hard to believe, but trust me, you need to go over everything. You all need to face the truth, like I did. That Akechi is not who we thought he was. How he tricked us all. But now I’m just rambling, and he’s serving time.**

**And with no further ado, the Case of The Disappearing Detective is closed for good. I think I’ll just keep the blog up for now so others don’t make the same mistakes I did.**

**So Sapph, if this reaches you, I’m so sorry for everything. That was awful of me. I don’t expect that you’ll ever forgive me. And I will just have to live with that.**

**-Kiki**  


“You have to be fucking kidding me.” He whispered.

_They did it. They actually did it._

Still, it paid to be careful. He waited one more week before he moved back into his apartment. The paparazzi were no longer there in the lobby. He picked up his old routine, apologizing profusely to Lala for being gone so long. He was relieved to be back in control of his life now, though, despite everything.

~~~~~~

**Futaba: tada! Mission success!**

Akira was confused for a moment, taking a break in cooking dinner before it clicked.

**It worked?**

**F: yes! Hes free of weird fans!**

**Ann: he seemed relieved. n shocked rly**

**Ryuji: we gotta celebrate wen every1s back 2gether!**

**HELL YEAH WE DO**

Akira was so stoked.

_Akechi is in the clear! My boyfriend-_

Akira stopped, frowning.

_No, my friend is okay. I should be better at remembering that._

Akira put the phone back down, concentrating on not burning his food. He couldn’t wait until he was able to throw a proper celebration party for this.

~~~~~~

“Come on, you gotta come with us to the beach at least once!” Ryuji said.

The group was hanging out in Leblanc, planning their next group hangout as their celebration died down. Akechi fiddled with his phone, sitting next to Ann and across from Akira.

“Uuh...I don’t know. I’m not a very big beach person.”

“Hey, neither am I, and I’m going. It’ll be fun!” Futaba smiled reassuringly.

“I’m going to have to get a bathing suit then.”

Akira smiled, chiming in to help plan the whole thing. Hanging out with his friends was always great, and he enjoyed his time with them all. He still missed being close to Akechi, wanted to be close again, but he didn’t want to overstep any boundaries right now. It would be bad for both of them.   


The beach wasn’t too bad this time, it was pretty cloudy and there were weather reports about rain showers, plus most schools were still going now, so not as many people came. Overall, it was a good day, cool enough to not have to go into the water. Akechi didn't look too comfortable when he thought no one was looking, but he seemed to be having fun at least. He sunbathed and talked most of the time, and Akira caught him dozing off once.

“Man, I'm getting hungry. We should get something.” Ryuji got up and stretched.

“On the boardwalk?” Akechi asked, sitting up.

“Yeah, why not. Pizza is pretty good here. How about we all share a pizza?”

“I might go with you to see what there is. I'm not really a pizza person.”

“Wait, really? Man, how do you live with yourself if you don't enjoy pizza?”

“Poorly, apparently.” He got up, throwing his shirt on. “Anyone else coming?”

“Hey, I'll go with you guys.” Ann got up too.

Akira watched the three of them walk away, chatting and laughing. He felt a bit sad, but he pushed those thoughts away. He wanted their friendship to last.

~~~~~~~~

“Hey, what about him?”

Akechi looked where Ann was pointing. They were hanging out while waiting for their food, people watching and trying to pick out potential dates for each other.

“I don't know… he's kinda like Ryuji, isn't he?”

“Ugh, you're right.”

“Ann, what about her? She's pretty.”

“Hm, not really my type though. Hey, that one?”

“Oh, he's cute. Maybe. What about his friend?”

“Oh, maybe we can get a double date? Wanna try it?”

“Yeah, maybe after we get our food first, though.”  


Eventually the three of them got back with food, settling down and passing out pizza slices for the people who wanted them.

“I don't know about you, but I'm excited about that double date we got.”

Akira perked up at that.

“Yeah, it'll be fun. I haven't been on a double date before.”

Akechi glanced at Akira, who quickly hid his jealousy by shoving pizza into his face. Everyone quieted down as they ate lunch, talking here and there. Akechi was checking his phone every once in a while, texting someone. He could see Akira kept trying to see who it was out of the corner of his eye.

“Hey, I'm going to the water, who’s with me?” Makoto got up, stretching.

The girls went down, leaving the boys behind.

“Don't you wanna go down too, Akira?” Akechi asked innocently.

“I'll wait for the pizza to digest a little.”

Akechi shrugged, looking at his phone as he got a text. He smiled, texting the boy back.

“So, does he look like Akira or what?”

Akechi rolled his eyes at Ryuji, going back to his phone.

“I have more than one type.”

“Oh, so what about the rest of us? Are any of us your type?”

“Do you really wanna know?”

“Yeah, I'm curious.”

He put his phone down, sitting up. He stares hard at Ryuji, making Ryuji twist the towel he was sitting on slightly.

“I mean, you're kind of cute Ryuji, but you're not really my type.”

“Well, what about Yusuke?”

Akechi and Yusuke stared at each other.

“I might go for it if I was interested.”

“Likewise.”

“What?! Yusuke’s more your type than I am?”

“Oh, am I _your_ type, Ryuji?”

“What- no! I mean it's not that you're not-! It's not like that- I'm straight!”

“Well, _that's_ unfortunate.”

Akechi smirks at his exasperated expression.

“Hey! I'm just not interested in dudes, okay?”

“Have you tried?”

“What?”

“You heard me.”

Akechi leans in really close to his face, Ryuji blushing, but not moving away just yet. Akechi closed the gap, Ryuji pulling away after a few seconds.

“Wh- hey! You just-”

Akechi snorted, falling onto his back and laughing. He could see Akira was flustered, turning away to hide his face.

“You are so weird sometimes, y’know that?”

“So are you.”

 

Akechi was a bit relieved when they decided to pack up and leave a little while later. He wasn't sure if he was able to stay near Akira any longer without the tension getting unbearable.

~~~~~~~~

“...And then I ended up giving him the tv smile.”

“Oh geez, that bad?”

Akira was grateful for once that he was doing inventory right now. Akechi couldn't see him get upset as he talked about his double date with Ann. He shouldn’t be feeling that way, it’s been almost four months since they broke up. He really should be feeling happy that Akechi was trying dating.

“At least Ann looked like she was having fun.”

Akechi sighed, leaning on the counter.

“Oh, right, sorry. You probably don't want to hear it, huh?”

“Don't apologize, I asked you about it.”

Akira scribbled down what the cafe needed more of, turning around when he was done.  Akechi was deep in thought, staring at his fingernails.

“Is something wrong?”

“Hm? Oh, uh,” Akechi straightened up again. “Just thinking about how if I do start getting serious with someone, I'm going to have to tell him eventually. About me, about all of that stuff.”

He bit his lip, staring out towards the windows.

“It won't be pretty, I'm afraid.”

“Is it the reputation thing?”

“No. Well, sort of. I mean, if I had my way, it would have been ruined anyway. So no harm done there.”

“Oh, the other stuff then?”

“Yeah, and nevermind the whole Metaverse thing. How do I explain half of that stuff without sounding like a madman?”

Akira refilled his water, placing the glass in front of him. He could tell Akechi was worried about it, even if he didn't sound or act like it. The way he twirled a loose strand of his hair, the underlying tone of his words.

“I'm sure when you do start getting serious with someone, he's gonna love you for you, no matter what.”

“If you say so.”

He heard Akechi mutter. Akira smiles reassuringly at him, not wanting to make him more upset. Akechi smiles back, but he knew Akechi was going to still fret about it.

 

Ryuji took him out to the arcade in Akihabara, to try and distract him.

“C’mon, I bet I can beat you in a racing game.”

“You're on, Ryuji.”

The two of them spent a few hours there, just playing each other and trying out a few other games they don't play much. As they were walking out, Akira stopped, seeing Akechi with someone else, laughing. He felt a lump in his throat as Akechi noticed him. He gently pulled his date over to go talk to them.

“Oh, hey Akira. Ryuji. Fancy meeting you two here.”

“Hey Sapph. Is that your date?”

Akechi nodded, introducing him to them. They talked for a little bit, Akira trying hard to act normal.

“Hey, we might be late for that movie if we stay any longer.”

“Oh, right, almost forgot. Well, see you guys around.”

“Yeah, see you dude.”

Akira watched Akechi leave. He started following, just to catch a bit of their conversation.

“...is your ex?”

“Yeah. We're just good friends now.”

“Man, I don't think I'm good friends with any of my exes, haha. I admire that about you.”

Akira stopped, letting Ryuji catch up and grab his arm. They were talking about him, he realized.

“Hey, you good?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah, I am.”

Later that night, Akira doesn't sleep well. He keeps thinking about how Akechi is being held by someone else, kissing someone else, somewhere far away from him. It hurt how much Akira missed him, and how Akechi didn't even seem phased by it at all.

  


Akira decided to go through the Phan-site again. Mishima told him he had made an account for Akechi during the whole thing so he could talk to people. And he was curious, besides.

“What are you up to?”

Akira glanced up at Futaba, then at Morgana as he jumps onto the table.

“I'm just reading stuff.”

“Akechi related stuff?”

“Uh…”

“Akira, I don't think it's a good idea to dwell on him.”

“Don't lecture me Morgana. I just wanted to know what he was up to during the whole thing. Besides, he's already dating someone.”

Morgana looked at him disapprovingly as Futaba slid into the booth across from him. He went back to his phone, looking through the threads, especially the joker appreciation thread.

**MiauMeow: man, id love to read a story by you sapph. your little posts on the pt outfits are rly cute ^-^**

**SaffireAce: I think I'll stick to sewing, honestly. Writing longer stuff isn't my forte, I'm not that great of a writer.**

**MiauMeow: o but i love the little story you got going there!**

**NowiJynx: oh. i didnt even notice haha. Thats so cute.**

**SaffireAce: Yeah, well. If I can get back to my blog without being harassed, I would love to be able to finish it.**

Akira was puzzled. He decided to follow one of the links earlier in the post to his blog, starting with his own outfit. He noticed there was two new posts up when he was done.

“Hey, did you notice his blog posts with our outfits? Like, actually read them?”

“Hm? No, not really. Why?”

Akira started to read off the little blurbs, and each and every one of them had small hints of them, things Akechi has noticed about them, things he silently admired from afar.

“Huh. It sounds unfinished, though.”

“He has two more posts up, hold on.”

Akira clicked through to the first of the newer posts to read it for himself, the one titled Masked Noble.

**All fairy tales with thieves seem to have some sort of masquerade ball, don't they? The kind where the thief goes and unwittingly steals the heart of a noble without them realizing who the thief really is. This time, it's the Heart Thief who realizes his own heart has been stolen. The Noble doesn't notice it yet, being rather oblivious to matters of romance. They can't stay like this though, without one of them getting hurt, whether that be by scandal or by the truth. Maybe they'll meet again one day, without their masks.**

Akira was staring silently at the picture of Joker and Crow, each dressed in the respective outfits, posed like they were dancing. The white outfit that Akechi had once worn on his gift from him, with the crow wearing his thief outfit. He clicked through to the other one. ignoring the stares of the other two.

**The Black Knight**

**I always love a good villain, although not many stories tend to pull one off. Fairy tales have some pretty good ones, I'd like to think. And what's a better twist than the villain being someone the hero thought they knew. Someone close to him, perhaps? Someone who was so twisted and corrupt even they themselves don't believe they can be saved. Sometimes the worst monsters are human. Tragedy can bring out the best or worst of us, depending on how much we decide to let it shape us. And this knight decided on vengeance over justice. But yet, there's always something bittersweet about the villain turning around and sacrificing himself to save the hero, so he can go on and save the world.**

Akira felt his shoulders tense up as he finished reading, seeing Futaba had also decided to read on her own phone. Morgana looked up at him, concerned. Akira forced himself to relax.

“Is that the gift he gave you?”

“Yeah. I didn't expect he would post both outfits, honestly.”

“Neither did I. Are you okay?”

“Okay, I admit it. I'm… a little jealous he's dating someone else. Like, I know I should be happy for him. Happy that he is getting out there and trying out other people. That he's trying to find someone that he clicks with, but I just can't stop feeling jealous. I know that's kinda an awful way to feel but…”

“You don't feel like you're getting over him.”

“Yeah. I don't want to ruin our friendship, I like being friends with him. This is just harder than I thought it would be.”

Akira sighs, putting his face in his hands.

“I think it's okay to be a little jealous as long as you're not acting on it. I mean, you two were pretty close. But it does feel tense when the two of you are in the same room sometimes.”

Akira hums gently, thinking over what Morgana has said.

“Okay, maybe I need to start dating other people. It’ll be easier to get over him that way.”

“That's the spirit.”

~~~~~~~~

Akechi knocked on the wall a few steps down from Akira's room. Sojiro was already gone for the day, letting him in before locking up.

“Come in.”

He walked up, seeing Akira sitting at his little workbench, fiddling with something. Five months since they broke up and started over. Akechi collapsed on the couch with a sigh.

“Something happen? I thought you two were thinking about going steady?”

“We talked about it. He decided we weren't going to work out.”

Akechi ruffled his hair. Akira put down his stuff and turned to face him.

“What about you, Akira? Any luck?”

“A couple of first dates here and there. I mean, Jin even set me up with this one girl, but we didn't really connect with each other.”

“Ah, that's too bad. I figured a lot more people would date you since everyone seems to fall in love with you.”

Akechi leaned onto the table with the tv, putting his face in his hand. Akira sat next to him on the couch, keeping some space between them.

“Hey, you've gotten more dates than me so far.”

“Which is weird to hear, considering you have twice the dating pool.”

“Yeah, well… I guess I'm just picky.”

It was quiet between them, Akechi inching a bit closer to him.

“What are you doing?”

Akechi looked at him, raising an eyebrow at the question. He put his arm behind Akira on the couch.

“What does it look like?”

“We're just friends, Akechi.”

“What, am I not allowed to be close to you now? You get way more touchy feely with Ryuji and you're not even dating him.”

“I thought Ryuji wasn't your type?” Akira leaned in, teasing him.

“He isn't.”

They stared at each other for a moment, Akechi realizing just how close Akira had gotten. He decided to close the gap, kissing him. Akira's eyes widened before he melted into the kiss. He put a hand on Akechi's chest, reluctantly pushing away.

“Friends, remember?”

“Did you really think this friendship was gonna last that much longer?”

Akira paused at the question, seeing the intensity in his eyes, searching him.

“Not really...”

Akechi pulled him onto his lap as they made out. Akira moaned into the kiss, cupping Akechi's face. They broke apart, panting heavily. Akira put his head on Akechi’s shoulder as Akechi rubbed circles on his back.

“Admit it, you missed this.”

Akira hugged him as he said it.

“You missed this too.” Akechi mumbled.

In response, Akira squeezes tighter. Akechi shifted, getting up with Akira still in his arms, carrying him over to the bed. Akira tensed a little as Akechi sat down on the bed before laying back, holding him in place on top of him. They fell into a comfortable silence, their earlier tension gone. Akechi pulls out the elastic, letting his hair be loose.

“Hey Akira, you're single, right? Do you wanna go on a date with me?”

Akira snorted, getting into a giggling fit at the question. Akechi grinned.

“Yeah, yeah I do. My god, you're such a dork.”

“So are you.”

Akechi closed his eyes, humming contentedly as Akira mussed up his hair.

“So, are we boyfriends again?”

“Why don't we focus on the dating thing first, okay? Then we can go steady again.”

“Knowing you Goro, that won't be very long with your impatience. Besides, we've been on plenty of dates.”

“I don't count one night stands as a date, Kiri.”

“I can change your mind if you stay the night here.”

“I doubt that you could.”

“Is that a challenge?”

“It is.”

“Oh, you’re on.”

Akira pressed their lips together again, tugging at Akechi's shirt. Akechi squeezed his waist, holding him tight against him. He lifted Akira and pressed his back into the bed. He needed to make Akira feel good, to make up for lost time, to celebrate the better terms they were on now.

 

Akechi could hear Akira finally drift off to sleep, just listening to his breathing after Akira settled onto his chest. Akechi pulled the blanket over both of them, threading his fingers through Akira’s hair. He definitely missed this while they were apart. He wouldn’t want to be anywhere else in the world right now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, okay, done, and not as long as the other final chapter surprisingly. Whew! What a ride. I'm taking a little break from this particular au for a little while to focus on other ideas I have and want to play with. Thank you all for reading! <3


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